Demigod of Past and Future put Together to READ!
by CelestialTitania
Summary: What happens when demigods and mortals from throughout the ages get some books, on the hero of Olympus? Pasts are put together and grudges are unraveled. Summary change! Rated T for mild bad language. That and Gabe infuriates people. It can't be helped.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, I'm back with yet another story. I know what you all are thinking but this fic just came to mind and I know it's been done countless times before. but I still wanted to do it. I'm going to try my best to update my other stories so plese bear with me everyone. Hope you enjoy the story!**

Percy pov:

I stood in the arena hacking away at the dummies. I was frustrated. The battle with Kronos ended a couple of months ago. But now that it was over, I didn't know what to do. So I just came down here to vent it out and it really was relaxing. Well for me at least. I was just going to go back to my cabin when a sea-green light enveloped me.

Thalia pov:

I slowly crept forward holding my bow when I heard the creature's footsteps. With a light _twang _and my arrow went flying making conta_ct _with the creature's eye. I stepped out from behind the bush and saw a beautiful golden deer. I quickly muttered an incantation in Ancient Greek and put my hand on it saying a soft blessing. A deer I couldn't believe my luck it was Lady Artemis' scared animal and she rarely let anyone kill it. I had obviously been blessed by my lady. By the way I was Lieutenant of the Hunt, so I was able to get her scared animal. But as Lieutenant I was able to say an incantation which would bless the animal's species with two of that animal for each one killed. Suddenly I saw a silvery-blue light and sneaked up to it. The logical side of me told me to leave it alone but the Huntress side was demanding to know what it was. I reached out my hand to touch it when I was without warning free falling towards the ground.

Nico pov:

I was in the Underworld trying to stay as far away from Persephone after she had just turned me into a dandelion, when a dark light the colour of Dad's robes caught my attention. It flicked around as if it was _trying _to catch my attention. I cautiously walked towards the light and was pulled in and found myself falling with a screaming girl. "Thalia?" I heard a boy ask. "Thals? Perce?" I questioned them "Nico?!" they screamed. We fell to the floor when a padded net of sorts caught us.

Poseidon's pov

It was the winter solstice and Zeus was talking about some boring thing like usual and the four heroes Hercules, Perseus, Theseus and Orion were invited to watch. He was just about to finish when three teenagers fell from the sky. I was annoyed but waved my hand to a special Greek sheet filled with feathers and moss. It caught two of them but the older of the two boys fell on to the hard tiled floor. I expected him to be dead so it was a real surprise when he got up. "Why does something like that always happen to me?" he asked. "I mean seriously I land two steps away from the thing while you two land on it!" The younger boy laughed "well Percy me and Thalia are just special like that." The boy Percy I think hissed "oh shut up Nico, let's see where we are." I think Zeus got impatient because he demanded to know who they were. Nico paled "you really don't know who we are? You didn't summon us?" Zeus straightened with pride thinking that he was able to summon mortals like that but answered "no, so introduce yourselves." Suddenly a large box dropped into the center of the room. then a note fluttered to the ground. Thalia bent down to pick it up "There's a note and it says:

_"Dear confused and maybe angry gods and demigods,_

_Three of you from the future along with these books have gone back about a thousand years at least, and you are there to read about a very special demigod while they were at a big war,' _

"War?" Ares muttered suddenly interested

_'this demigod is Percy Jackson and don't worry time has stopped while you read this and in case you were wondering Zeus your future self approves of this plan. Artemis call Zoë Nightshade so we have another Hunter, Poseidon call Amphitrite, Triton and Hades call Persephone. Also do not hurt the future demigods. Have a good reading!_

_By the most awesome gods ever Apollo and Hermes and the Fates,"_

_PS: Future Demigods please introduce yourselves by just name. This is because it might ruin the story. Thank you!_

The tree of them looked towards each other and sighed "alright," and nudged the girl to go first. She shook her head but said "I am Thalia Grace," The boys nodded then the one called Nico sighed and said I am Nico Di'Angelo," and sat down. Percy sighed and said "I'm Percy Jackson." Then Zeus nodded towards the other four demigods. "I am Perseus hero of Olympus, I am Theseus hero of Olympus, I am Orion man of the stars, hero of Olympus and I am Heracles hero of Olympus.' At Hercules Percy lunged and Thalia and Nico held him back "Percy calm down, we know but not now. Maybe at the arena."

Artemis nodded " Alright then, I'll call Zoë," and suddenly the Huntress was there. Artemis quickly explained what was happening and she nodded though she was tense. "Zoë please state your name and title in case the future demigods do not know you." Artemis asked her. Zoë agreed and stated "I am Zoë Nightshade Lieutenant of Lady Artemis." The future demigods all looked away not able to meet her eye.

Hades and Poseidon called their wives and kid respectively. Persephone was given a throne next to Hades with black and red roses as a backseat with dozens of other flowers weaved in. Amphitrite's throne was next to Poseidon made from something that looked like the bottom half of an oyster and a backseat with a dozen, glimmering pearls. Triton's throne was next to Amphitrite's and looked a lot like Poseidon's but much more plain. They all sighed

"I guess we have to read these books, what are they called?" Percy muttered "Percy Jackson and the Olympians:The Lightning Thief, The Sea of Monsters, The Titan's Curse, The Battle of the Labyrinth, and The Last Olympian. Then there's another series The Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero, The Son of Neptune, The Mark of Athena and the House of Hades. I'm guessing The Lightning Thief is the first book we have to read." Thalia answered. "I'll read first." Thalia volunteered."Wait!" Percy shouted "is Lady Hestia here?" Hestia stepped out of the hearth "yes young hero, please start."

**Well, it's off to a good start. Please review if you like my story so far!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter II

**Hello everyone as promised I have now uploaded the new chapter. (thinks to herself) wow must be a new record for uploading. So hope yu like it enjoy. And if you can check out some of my other stories.**

**Disclaimer: I actually forgot to do it last time. Really sorry. Anyways I would do a funny disclaimer, but I just want to writethis chapter so, CelestialTitania does not own Percy Jackson and The Olympians, unless Rick Riordan would be oh so kind to...**

**Rick: Forget it crazy girl**

**Me: Dang it! Almost got away with it, anyways here ya go.**

** I accidentally vaporize my Pre-Algebra teacher**

Orion stared at Percy "How in Hades do you accidentally _vaporize_ you pre-algebra teacher?" Percy just smirked playfully "You'll see." He said sing-song voice.

**Look I didn't want to be a half-blood.**

All the demigods nodded wholeheartedly making the gods guilty and shocked.

**If you're reading this because you think you might be one my advice is:**

"Oh my gods! Percy? Giving _advice_? Run for cover!" Thalia shouted making all the demigods laugh. **(AU: From now on when I say all the demigods that means all the half-bloods and Zoë, past demigods are Perseus, Theseus, Hercules and Orion, and when I say the futures, Thalia, Percy and Nico)**

**-close this book right now. Believe whatever lie your mom or dad told you about your birth and try to lead lead a normal life.**

"Not bad Kelp Head, not bad," Thalia complimented while Demeter grumbled saying something how parents shouldn't have to lie to their children.

**Being a half-blood is dangerous. **

"Check," Nico confirmed

**It's scary.**

"Check," Theseus muttered making both Poseidon and Athena turn towards him.

**Most of the time, it gets you killed in painful, nasty ways.**

"Double Check," all the demigods excluding Zoë chorused. The gods turned pale.

**If you're a normal kid, reading this because you think it's fiction, great. Read on. I envy you for being able to believe that none of this ever happened.**

"Why would mortals read this?" Athena leaned forward and the futures shrugged.

**But if you recognize yourself in these pages-if you feel something stirring inside-stop reading immediately. You might be one of us. And once you know that, it's only a matter of time before they sense it too, and they'll come for you.**

**Don't say I didn't warn you.**

"You didn't warn me," Thalia and Nico said in sync. "Thalia," Percy rolled his eyes "back then I didn't know you and Nico, well I sorry for being to busy saving from a manticore." The gods had slightly widened eyes.

**My name is Percy Jackson.**

Zoë rolled her eyes "No, how could that be? _Men_, so foolish." Hercules turned away from her feeling for the first time guilty.

**I'm twelve years old. Until a few months ago, I was a boarding student at Yancy Academy, a private school for troubled kids in upstate New York.**

**Am I a troubled kid?**

"Yes," Thalia and Nico answered and Percy glared at them "Feel'in the love."

**Yeah. You could say that.**

Thalia burst out laughing and Nico spluttered out. "Wow Perce, even you admit it."\

**I could start at any point in my short miserable life to prove it, but things really started going bad last May, when our sixth-grade class took a field trip to Manhattan- twenty-eight mental-case kids and two teachers on a yellow school bus, heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at ancient Greek and Roman stuff.**

Athena brightened "That sounds fascinating. " While at the exact same time "Ugh," Orion, Poseidon and Triton groaned "sounds like torture."

**I know-it sounds like torture.**

Everyone had to stifle their laughter.

Most Yancy field trips were.

**But Mr. Brunner, our Latin teacher, was leading this trip, so I had hopes.**

**Mr. Brunner was this middle-aged guy in a motorized wheelchair. He had thinning hair and a scruffy beard and a frayed tweed jacket, which always smelled like coffee.**

"Hmm," the past demigods mused "This person sounds familiar." The futures only shared secretive smirks.

**You wouldn't think he'd be cool, but he told stories and jokes and let us play games in class. He also had this awesome collection of Roman armor and weapons, so he was the only teacher whose class didn't put me to sleep.**

Athena and Theseus looked appalled "You slept in class?" they both questioned Percy. He only shrugged in response.

**I hoped the trip would be okay. At least, I hoped that for once I wouldn't get in trouble.**

Thalia and Nico scoffed.

**Boy, was I wrong.**

"Knew it!" Nico called out, and Perseus whispered to Orion "Whose kid do you think he is?" Even Theseus was stumped.

**See, bad things happen to me on field trips. Like at my fifth-grade school, when we went to the Saratoga battlefield, I had this accident with a Revolutionary War cannon. I wasn't aiming for the school bus, but of course I got expelled anyway.**

Hermes and Apollo burst out laughing. They were beginning to like this kid and planned to have him help out on pranks. Hestia frowned "Then what were you aiming for?" Percy laughed "It happened so long ago, I forgot." Percy looked up in surprise as he saw her on an Olympian throne and quickly nodded his thanks. The gods frowned thinking what had happened to Hestia. "Where's Dionysus?" Percy asked. Zeus answered "he went to fetch his wife." Percy nodded "Lord Zeus can you bring him up here faster? It doesn't feel the same to be on Olympus without Dionysus getting my name wrong." Nico gasped "Peter Johnson, how dare you? Pedro I demand to not be called to read with you brats. Now go away Perry Jonson." The future demigods burst out laughing "Mr. D doesn't sound like that," Thalia choked out.

Zeus sighed and with a snap of his fingers and Dionysus was standing in front of them holding Ariadne's hand. Theseus looked at the floor upset he had to leave Ariadne. They were quickly filled in and they continued to read. "Mr. D?" Orion's face was remarkable, eyes wide in surprise. Percy shrugged "he _is_ the camp director." Dionysus seemed to swell with pride. Until Percy added "It's OK, Mr. D we all know how much you dislike us all and curse the fact that Zeus punished you for chasing a off-limits wood nymph. At least it's only 50 years now rather than a 100. The gods know how much you love getting our names wrong!" Ariadne raised a brow "off-limits wood nymph?" Percy cut in "Uh it's okay. He's a lot happier near you anyways." Dionysus sighed in relief when Ariadne looked at him pleased. "Thank you Peter Johnson." Percy, Nico and Thalia burst out laughing and the gods understood their little act from before. Dionysus narrowed his eyes and Hermes and Apollo grinned, "Sup D?" Dionysus groaned and Ariadne laughed. Theseus looked at the floor her laugh was beautiful. "Well? Let's read!"

**And before that, at my fourth-grade school, when we took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Marine World shark pool, I sort of hit the wrong lever on the catwalk and our class took an unplanned swim.**

Apollo and Hermes grinned. Oh they couldn't wait to pull this kid away, he was pure GOLD! Everyone else was laughing so hard their sides hurt and it took a while before they calmed down. Even Zoë had a hard time calming down.

**And the time before that… Well, you get the idea.**

"Noooo, we wanted to hear more." Apollo and Hermes pouted and Artemis let out a volley of silver arrows. "You two be quiet or..." Artemis left the threat hanging and they immediately shut up.

**This trip, I was determined to be good.**

"What? No! Don't break the record!" Apollo couldn't help but burst out. Hercules was annoyed at how the gods were enjoying this "stupid demigod's" antics and Zoë and Artemis rolled their eyes. As if a man could ever be good.

**All the way into the city, I put up with Nancy Bobofit, the freckly, redheaded kleptomaniac girl, hitting my best friend Grover in the back of the head with chunks of peanut butter-and-ketchup sandwich.**

"Eww!" Aphrodite shrieked and Nico was having a hard time restraining Thalia and Percy.

**Grover was an easy target. He was scrawny. He cried when he got frustrated. He must've been held back several grades, because he was the only sixth grader with acne and the start of a wispy beard on his chin. On top of all that, he was crippled.**

"Nice description," Hermes glanced at Percy who looked sheepish. "I can't wait to tell Grover," spoke up Nico and shared a wicked grin with Thalia.

**He had a note excusing him from PE for the rest of his life because he had some kind of muscular disease in his legs. He walked funny, like every step hurt him, but don't let that fool you. You should've seen him run when it was enchilada day in the cafeteria.**

Thalia groaned "way to blow your cover Goat Boy." Hermes looked amused "my son's subjects are amazing creatures aren't they?" All the gods agreed remembering how Pan saved them from a battle against the Titans, but the futures had sad looks on their faces. The gods kept getting worried. First Hestia and now Pan? What was going to happen?

******Anyway, Nancy Bobofit was throwing wads of sandwich that stuck in his curly brown hair, and she knew I couldn't do anything back to her because I was already on probation. The headmaster had threatened me with death by in-school suspension if anything bad, embarrassing, or even mildly entertaining happened on this trip.**

Nico was having trouble restraining Percy and when Thalia saw her cousin's state she stopped fighting Nico and helped. Together they were barely able to stop him.

******"I'm going to kill her," I mumbled.**

Ares' eyes gleamed "DO IT!" Hera and Aphrodite slapped him upside the head at the same time. "Behave yourself!" They scolded Ares, and Percy had to restrain his laughter. _'They were in the future. My dad doesn't know who I am yet and Ares may be able to kill me by showing his true godly form. He has nothing to worry about right now.'_ Percy reminded himself of the facts.

******Grover tried to calm me down. "It's okay. I like peanut butter."**

Nico looked at the book weirdly and Percy raised a brow "So does Tyson, but I bet even he wouldn't want any in his _hair_." Theseus frowned "Um, what _is _peanut butter?" The future looked surprised for a split second. "Ah," Percy remembered first "peanut butter hasn't been invented yet." Thalia nodded "It's like taking a type of nut and churning it _a lot_."  
"Um, OK," Theseus was still confused but now he knew better then to ask the future demigods to explain. They were horrible at it!

**He dodged another piece of Nancy's lunch.**

**"That's it." I started to get up, but Grover pulled me back to my seat.**

Ares booed softly in his seat, and now Percy was glaring at the floor. "Hmm, maybe you should have told someone in charge?" Amphitrite suggested softly. She normally didn't like heroes, after all so many were sired by her husband but this demigod was making her feel oddly attached to him. Percy shook his head "As if they would believe me." Ariadne and Amphitrite looked at the boy and cooed softly. This action made Poseidon, Trition, Theseus and Dionysus feel angry and annoyed.

**"You're already on probation," he reminded me."You know who'll get blamed if anything happens."**

**Looking back on it, I wish I'd decked Nancy Bobofit right then and there. In-school suspension would've been nothing compared to the mess I was about to get myself into.****Mr. Brunner led the museum tour.****He rode up front in his wheelchair, guiding us through the big echoing galleries, past marble statues and glass cases full of really old black-and-orange pottery. ****It blew my mind that this stuff had survived for two thousand, three thousand years.**

"Longer we're sure," Artemis and Zoë scoffed. Typical men.

**He gathered us around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top, and started telling us how it was a grave marker, a stele, for a girl about our age. He told us about the carvings on the sides. I was trying to listen to what he had to say, because it was kind of interesting, but everybody around me was talking, and every time I told them to shut up, the other teacher chaperon, Mrs. Dodds, would give me the evil eye.**

Nico frowned _'Mrs. Dodds? Isn't that was Percy called Alec- oh no, she didn't.'_

**Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia who always wore a black leather jacket, even though she was fifty years old. She looked mean enough to ride a Harley right into your locker. She had come to Yancy halfway through the year, when our last math teacher had a nervous breakdown.**

Hades and Persephone glanced at each other. The two had suspicion about she was and wondered why she was there.

**From her first day, Mrs. Dodds loved Nancy Bobofit and figured I was devil spawn. **

"Devil spawn?" Thalia asked "Nah she got that wrong, that's Nico,"

"Yeah," Nico agreed until realization struck "HEY!"

**She would point her crooked finger at me and say, "Now, honey," real sweet, and I knew I was going to get after-school detention for a month.**

Hermes looked horrified "That's torture!"

**One time, after she'd made me erase answers out of old math workbooks until midnight, I told Grover I didn't think Mrs. Dodds was human. He looked at me, real serious, and said,"You're absolutely right."**

Dionysus looked horrified "Those satyrs!" They all looked at him in shock. "Mr. D you were listening?" He scowled "Of course not Pedro! Now continue reading." Apollo shrugged "Sure D." Dionysus groaned and Ariadne squeezed his hand. Theseus was upset but he knew it was because of his own decisions and choices. He wanted fame and now look what happened.

**Mr. Brunner kept talking about Greek funeral art.**

**Finally, Nancy Bobofit snickered something about the naked guy on the stele, and I turned around and said,"Will you shut up?"**

**It came out louder than I meant it to.**

Zoë silently snickered "Of course it did, for thou are a _boy_." No one noticed Hercules flinch.

**The whole group laughed. Mr. Brunner stopped his story.**

**"Mr. Jackson," he said, "did you have a comment?"**

**My face was totally red. I said, "No, sir."**

**Mr. Brunner pointed to one of the pictures on the stele. "Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents?"**

**I looked at the carving, and felt a flush of relief, because I actually recognized it. "That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"**

The eldest gods Hestia, Hades, Hera, Poseidon, and Demeter looked at each other and mournfully asked everyone else "Why does it have to be that one?" Zeus was thanking his lucky stars that he didn't have to be a part of it. Artemis who was connected to the stars by the moon and Apollo conected by the sun and the god of prophecy held in laughs at their father's words.

**"Yes," Mr. Brunner said, obviously not satisfied. "And he did this because …"**

**"Well…" I racked my brain to remember. "Kronos was the king god, and-"**

"KING GOD!" Zeus thundered standing up, master bolt in hand. "HOW,-"

"Peace brother, the teacher will correct the boy-" Hades began "so you can end your drama show." Poseidon finished and Zeus had a hint of pink on his cheeks. The past demigods were in shock, two gods that they thought could have more power, made the King of the Gods flush.

******"God?" Mr. Brunner asked.**

Just to add salt in the wound Hades and Poseidon grinned at each other and said "Told you."

**"Titan," I corrected myself. "And … he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead. And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters-"**

**"Eeew!" said one of the girls behind me.**

"Eeew? You try being in it and then see if eww, fits the bill, you stupid mortal!" Hera spat while shuddering at the memory. Zeus seeing Hera like that gave her a comforting hug, leaving everyone thinking they were delusional and crazy.

**"-and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans," I continued, "and the gods won."**

Theseus and Athena stared at Percy "You summarized the biggest war in our history-" she began and Theseus finished for her "in three measly _sentences_?!" Percy looked at them sheepishly.

**Some snickers from the group.**

"Why are they laughing? He got it right." Persephone asked in concern. Hades turned to his wife "Don't worry my dear, no can understand why mortals do anything," he told her squeezing her hand. Demeter watched softly happy that at least Hades cared about her Kore, but irritated he was the one who had to comfort her Kore. She sighed and decided to let it go just this once.

**Behind me, Nancy Bobofit mumbled to a friend,"Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'"**

**"And why, Mr. Jackson," Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"**

"Busted," Hermes smirked.

**"Busted," Grover muttered.**

Everyone burst out laughing and Hestia smiled softly "like father, like son, like subject." "HUH?!" Everyone was staring at her in confusion. "You know Hermes is Pan's father, and Pan is a satyr and I'm sure that this person is actually-" she paused when she saw everyone trying to keep in laughs. Hestia sighed "Oh never mind," and promptly everyone let out their laughter. It took a while for them to regain focus.

**"Shut up," Nancy hissed, her face even brighter red than her hair.**

**At least Nancy got packed, too. Mr. Brunner was the only one who ever caught her saying anything wrong. He had radar ears.**

**I thought about his question, and shrugged. "I don't know, sir."**

**"I see." Mr. Brunner looked disappointed."Well, half credit, Mr. Jackson. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"**

Hermes and Apollo looked appalled "Happy Note?!" Hestia, Hera and Demeter were trying to keep their nausea away.

**The class drifted off, the girls holding their stomachs, the guys pushing each other around and acting like doofuses.**

Zoë and Artemis rolled their eyes "Men are doofuses." Thalia shook her head "Not all men and in the future you both agree." Orion and Hercules looked slightly hopeful after those words.

**Grover and I were about to follow when Mr. Brunner said, "Mr. Jackson."**

**I knew that was coming.**

Orion looked at Percy "How? You a child of Apollo?" Percy chuckled and just gestured toward the book making everyone who was eager for answers groan.

**I told Grover to keep going. Then I turned toward Mr. Brunner. "Sir?"**

**Mr. Brunner had this look that wouldn't let you go- intense brown eyes that could've been a thousand years old and had seen everything.**

They were all surprised and wondered who it could be.

**"You must learn the answer to my question," Mr. Brunner told me.**

**"About the Titans?"**

**"About real life. And how your studies apply to it."**

**"Oh."**

Nico laughed "Typical Percy answer," Percy being the mature person he is stuck his tongue out.

**"What you learn from me," he said, "is vitally important. I expect you to treat it as such. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson."**

**I wanted to get angry, this guy pushed me so hard.**

Athena looked at him "For a good cause."

**I mean, sure, it was kind of cool on tournament days, when he dressed up in a suit of Roman armor and shouted:"What ho!'" and challenged us, sword-point against chalk, to run to the board and name every Greek and Roman person who had ever lived, and their mother, and what god they worshiped. **

All the demigods except Zoë grinned and (excluding Zoë and Percy) shouted "I want him as my teacher!"

**But Mr. Brunner expected me to be as good as everybody else, despite the fact that I have dyslexia and attention deficit disorder and I had never made above a C- in my life. No-he didn't expect me to be as good; he expected me to be better. And I just couldn't learn all those names and facts, much less spell them correctly.**

Theseus looked like someone had told him everyone he cared about had died "A C-, I don't know what that is but it sounds horrible!" Thalia laughed "It is," making Theseus groan.

**I mumbled something about trying harder, while Mr. Brunner took one long sad look at the stele, like he'd been at this girl's funeral.**

**He told me to go outside and eat my lunch.**

**The class gathered on the front steps of the museum, where we could watch the foot traffic along Fifth Avenue.**

**Overhead, a huge storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than I'd ever seen over the city. I figured maybe it was global warming or something, because the weather all across New York state had been weird since Christmas.**

All eyes on Zeus.

**We'd had massive snow storms, flooding, wildfires from lightning strikes. I wouldn't have been surprised if this was a hurricane blowing in.**

All eyes on Zeus and Poseidon. The two started to feel uncomfortable.

**Nobody else seemed to notice. Some of the guys were pelting pigeons with Lunchables crackers. Nancy Bobofit was trying to pickpocket something from a lady's purse, and, of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn't seeing a thing.****Grover and I sat on the edge of the fountain, away from the others. We thought that maybe if we did that, everybody wouldn't know we were from that school-the school for loser freaks who couldn't make it elsewhere.**

Thalia and Nico gritted their teeth Percy and Grover were _not_ loser freaks.

**"Detention?" Grover asked.**

**"Nah," I said. "Not from Brunner. I just wish he'd lay off me sometimes. I mean-I'm not a genius."**

Thalia grinned and Nico said "Truer words have ever been spoken."

**Grover didn't say anything for a while. Then, when I thought he was going to give me some deep philosophical comment to make me feel better, he said, "Can I have your apple?"**

Everyone stared at the person next to them, 1...2...3...4...5... laughter echoed in the throne room.

**I didn't have much of an appetite, so I let him take it.**

**I watched the stream of cabs going down Fifth Avenue, and thought about my mom's apartment, only a little ways uptown from where we sat. I hadn't seen her since Christmas. I wanted so bad to jump in a taxi and head home. She'd hug me and be glad to see me, but she'd be disappointed, too. She'd send me right back to Yancy, remind me that I had to try harder, even if this was my sixth school in six years and I was probably going to be kicked out again. I wouldn't be able to stand that sad look she'd give me.**

All the goddesses cooed softly and Amphitrite looked at Percy,_'you are a good hero. Please don't be _his_ kid and I might come to care about you and give you my blessing. Please.'_

**Mr. Brunner parked his wheelchair at the base of the handicapped ramp. He ate celery while he read a paperback novel. A red umbrella stuck up from the back of his chair, making it look like a motorized cafe table.**

Hephaestus perked up wondering what the item was and if he could build it.

**I was about to unwrap my sandwich when Nancy Bobofit appeared in front of me with her ugly friends-I guess she'd gotten tired of stealing from the tourists-and dumped her half-eaten lunch in Grover's lap.**

Once again Nico was handed the task of refraining his two cousins from destroying something.

**"Oops." She grinned at me with her crooked teeth. Her freckles were orange, as if somebody had spray-painted her face with liquid Cheetos.**

Aphrodite looked horrified "how can _anyone_ look so ugly?"

**I tried to stay cool. The school counselor had told me a million times, "Count to ten, get control of your temper." But I was so mad my mind went blank. A wave roared in my ears.**

Everyone's eyes narrowed _wave_?

**I don't remember touching her, but the next thing I knew, Nancy was sitting on her butt in the fountain, screaming, "Percy pushed me!"**

**Mrs. Dodds materialized next to us.**

**Some of the kids were whispering: "Did you see-"**

**"-the water-"**

**"-like it grabbed her-"**

"Poseidon, his father is Poseidon," Triton said blankly. He had wanted to talk to this demigod, he was amusing yet. Triton sighed and Amphitrite cursed. How she had hoped but yet. As if following Trion's words a green glow lit up around the boy a trident shimmering above his head, and a note fluttered down. Perseus snatched it up and read:

_Gods and demigods of both future and past we apologize for the surprise. Just to now let you know every time a demigod's identity will be revealed they will be claimed by their godly parent. Well actually we're just making signs to make it be repeated in history. Sincerely Amazing Apollo, Incredible Hermes and the Fates._

They all looked at Percy and Poseidon who seemed to be having a staring contest. Nico whispered to Thalia "Is it weird they're not yelling at him?" She shook her head "No, the oath hasn't been made yet." Thalia decided to cut in to the two "Can we read on?" They simply nodded and she began.

**I didn't know what they were talking about. All I knew was that I was in trouble again.**

**As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure poor little Nancy was okay, promising to get her a new shirt at the museum gift shop, etc., etc., Mrs. Dodds turned on me. There was a triumphant fire in her eyes, as if I'd done something she'd been waiting for all semester. "Now, honey-"**

**"I know," I grumbled. "A month erasing workbooks."**

"Never guess your punishment," Hermes told him bitterly

**That wasn't the right thing to say.**

"Knew it," Hermes' voice was very bitter and when they saw Hera smile sickeningly sweet they knew not to ask.

**"Come with me," Mrs. Dodds said.**

**"Wait!" Grover yelped. "It was me. I pushed her."**

Thalia smiled softly, slightly shocked "That stupid, loyal satyr!" Hermes looked at her satyr, just like Pan. Hmmm.

**I stared at him, stunned. I couldn't believe he was trying to cover for me. Mrs. Dodds scared Grover to death.**

**She glared at him so hard his whiskery chin trembled.**

**"I don't think so, Mr. Underwood," she said.**

**"But-"**

**"You-will-stay-here."**

**Grover looked at me desperately.**

**"It's okay, man," I told him. "Thanks for trying."**

**"Honey," Mrs. Dodds barked at me. "Now."**

**Nancy Bobofit smirked.**

**I gave her my deluxe I'll-kill-you-later stare.**

The futures shuddered while Percy smiled smugly. The people of the past knew not to ask.

**Then I turned to face Mrs. Dodds, but she wasn't there. She was standing at the museum entrance, way at the top of the steps, gesturing impatiently at me to come on.**

**How'd she get there so fast?**

**I have moments like that a lot, when my brain falls asleep or something, and the next thing I know I've missed something, as if a puzzle piece fell out of the universe and left me staring at the blank place behind it. The school counselor told me this was part of the ADHD, my brain misinterpreting things.**

Triton, Orion, Poseidon and Theseus spoke at the same time "I'm not so sure."

**I wasn't so sure.**

A couple of people laughed trying to reduce the tension. Triton was annoyed he thought the same thing as Percy while he others were slightly happy. "Like father, like son, like brothers," Hestia said making everyone laugh again remembering what she had said previously.

**I went after Mrs. Dodds.**

"No don't go after her!" Perseus shouted worried about his namesake.

**Halfway up the steps, I glanced back at Grover. He was looking pale, cutting his eyes between me and Mr. Brunner, like he wanted Mr. Brunner to notice what was going on, but Mr. Brunner was absorbed in his novel.**

**I looked back up. Mrs. Dodds had disappeared again. She was now inside the building, at the end of the entrance hall.**

**Okay, I thought. She's going to make me buy a new shirt for Nancy at the gift shop.**

**But apparently that wasn't the plan.**

"It never is," The demigods all groaned.

**I followed her deeper into the museum. When I finally caught up to her, we were back in the Greek and Roman section.**

**Except for us, the gallery was empty.**

**Mrs. Dodds stood with her arms crossed in front of a big marble frieze of the Greek gods. She was making this weird noise in her throat, like growling.**

**Even without the noise, I would've been nervous. It's weird being alone with a teacher, especially Mrs. Dodds. Something about the way she looked at the frieze, as if she wanted to pulverize it…**

**"You've been giving us problems, honey," she said.**

**I did the safe thing. I said, "Yes, ma'am."**

Thalia seemed to be in dream world "Percy...safe ...thing... Hahahahaha that is just to hard to believe."

**She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket. "Did you really think you would get away with it?"**

"Get away with what!" Athena shouted frustrated. "Don't know Bird-Brain but maybe if you shut up we'll find out." Poseidon retorted, the insults being fired back and forth. Theseus finally cut in "Lady Athena, Father please calm down." Aphrodite pouted "Why did you stop them? The Pothena was absolutely amazing." Everyone stared at her "It's a couple pairing name for Poseidon and Athena," They all stared at her. "WHAT?!" Amphitrite and Triton stood up along with Poseidon and Athena "That will NEVER happen Aphrodite!" She pouted but let it go.

**The look in her eyes was beyond mad. It was evil.**

**She's a teacher, I thought nervously. It's not like she's going to hurt me.**

**I said, "I'll-I'll try harder, ma'am."**

**Thunder shook the building.**

Zeus frowned _'Why am I angry?'_ Unknown to him everyone but Percy was wondering the exact same thing.

**"We are not fools, Percy Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said. "It was only a matter of time before we found you out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain."**

**I didn't know what she was talking about.**

**All I could think of was that the teachers must've found the illegal stash of candy I'd been selling out of my dorm room. Or maybe they'd realized I got my essay on Tom Sawyer from the Internet without ever reading the book and now they were going to take away my grade. Or worse, they were going to make me read the book.**

**"Well?" she demanded.**

**"Ma'am, I don't…"**

**"Your time is up," she hissed.**

**Then the weirdest thing happened. Her eyes began to glow like barbecue coals. Her fingers stretched, turning into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She wasn't human. She was a shriveled hag with bat wings and claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs, and she was about to slice me to ribbons.**

Hades stared up and he, Persephone and Nico said at the exact same time "Alecto." Hades frowned at Nico "How did you know," Persephone was staring at Nico intently. He gulped "Um encountered her a couple of times," fake shuddered "was _not_ pleasant." Hades rolled his eyes and Persephone had an amused expression. Poseidon stared at him "A fury? Why?" Hades shrugged how the did he know what his future self was thinking?!

**Then things got even stranger.**

"How does it get stranger, then being attacked by a F- Kindly One?" Perseus asked and Percy shrugged.

**Mr. Brunner, who'd been out in front of the museum a minute before, wheeled his chair into the doorway of the gallery, holding a pen in his hand.**

**"What ho, Percy!" he shouted, and tossed the pen through the air.**

**Mrs. Dodds lunged at me.**

**With a yelp, I dodged and felt talons slash the air next to my ear. I snatched the ballpoint pen out of the air, but when it hit my hand, it wasn't a pen anymore. It was a sword-Mr. Brunner's bronze sword, which he always used on tournament day.**

**Mrs. Dodds spun toward me with a murderous look in her eyes.**

**My knees were jelly. My hands were shaking so bad I almost dropped the sword.**

**She snarled, "Die, honey!"**

**And she flew straight at me.**

**Absolute terror ran through my body. I did the only thing that came naturally: I swung the sword.**

"Naturally?!" The cry came from Ares "How is it- wait are you my descendant or something?" Athena gasped "Ares asked something intelligent!" "HEY!" Percy shrugged Hades if he knew and gods forbid it be true.

**The metal blade hit her shoulder and passed clean through her body as if she were made of water. Hisss!**

Cheers went up and resounded throughout the throne room.

**Mrs. Dodds was a sand castle in a power fan. She exploded into yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur and a dying screech and a chill of evil in the air, as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching me.**

Amphitrite rolled her eyes. Of course a water reference.

**I was alone.**

**There was a ballpoint pen in my hand.**

**Mr. Brunner wasn't there. Nobody was there but me.**

**My hands were still trembling. My lunch must've been contaminated with magic mushrooms or something.**

**Had I imagined the whole thing?**

**I went back outside.**

**It had started to rain.**

**Grover was sitting by the fountain, a museum map tented over his head. Nancy Bobofit was still standing there, soaked from her swim in the fountain, grumbling to her ugly friends. When she saw me, she said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."**

Theseus and Orion both asked "Who?"

**I said, "Who?"**

Hercules laughed "siblings think alike." The three shared a smile.

**"Our teacher. Duh!"**

**I blinked. We had no teacher named Mrs. Kerr. I asked Nancy what she was talking about.**

**She just rolled her eyes and turned away.**

**I asked Grover where Mrs. Dodds was.**

**He said, "Who?"**

**But he paused first, and he wouldn't look at me, so I thought he was messing with me.**

Hermes sighed dramatically "Satyrs can' t lie. What a pity, I've tried teaching Pan but alas!"

**"Not funny, man," I told him. "This is serious."**

**Thunder boomed overhead.**

Perseus and Thalia laughed "Looks like Dad agrees!"

**I saw Mr. Brunner sitting under his red umbrella, reading his book, as if he'd never moved.**

**I went over to him.**

**He looked up, a little distracted. "Ah, that would be my pen. Please bring your own writing utensil in the future, Mr. Jackson."**

**I handed Mr. Brunner his pen. I hadn't even realized I was still holding it.**

**"Sir," I said, "where's Mrs. Dodds?"**

**He stared at me blankly. "Who?"**

**"The other chaperon. Mrs. Dodds. The pre-algebra teacher."**

**He frowned and sat forward, looking mildly concerned. "Percy, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know, there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling all right?"**

Hermes nodded proudly "It's Chiron, and good at least he can lie well." The past heroes were glad their teacher was still well in the future. Thalia closed the book and looked up "So whose going to read the next chapter?"

Theseus got up and took the book form Thalia. "I will," he flipped to the correct page and began...

**Chapter 2: Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death...**

**And Done! I'm going to upload or try to upload every other day or so. Thanks for reading this stupid story. Bye for now!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello again everyone. I'm sooooooo sorry for being unable to upload sooner as promised. It's just that I was on vacation to Pennsylvania and of course there was no internet access. Besides my mom said I wasn't allowed to use any electronic devices on the trip other to take pictures so yeah. But I'm Baaack, so chapters will arrive fast and I hope you enjoy reading them. Thank you everyone that reviewed!**

**Disclaimer: Thalia: CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO, it's characters or any of the books being read. Not a single word**

**Me: Woah, wasn't that too fast?**

**Thalia: For me? Nah**

**Me: B-but (gapes aimlessly) Fine**

**Both: Enjoy the story!**

_Theseus got up and took the book form Thalia. "I will," he flipped to the correct page and began..._** Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death**

**I was used to the occasional weird experience, but usually they were over quickly. This twenty-four/seven hallucination was more than I could handle. **

All the demigods shuddered. It had happened to them often and they _hated_ the feeling.

**For the rest of the school year, the entire campus seemed to be playing some kind of trick on me. The students acted as if they were completely and totally convinced that Mrs. Kerr-a perky blond woman whom I'd never seen in my life until she got on our bus at the end of the field trip-had been our pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.**

**Every so often I would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if I could trip them up, but they would st are at me like I was psycho.**

Nico stared at Percy "I don't think you're psycho. Maybe we should have Mr. D check you?" Poseidon was about to agree when Percy rolled his eyes and dryly replied "Ha ha Nico very funny." Nico just grinned.

**It got so I almost believed them-Mrs. Dodds had never existed.**

**Almost.**

"50 drachmas it's Grover?" Hermes asked Apollo.

"Done."

**But Grover couldn't fool me.**

"And 50 drachmas for me thank you very much," Hermes held out his hand and Apollo grumbled and gave it to Hermes.

Thalia rolled her eyes "Really Goat Boy?"

**When I mentioned the name Dodds to him, he would hesitate, then claim she didn't exist. But I knew he was lying.**

**Something was going on. Something had happened at the museum. ****I didn't have much time to think about it during the days, but at night, visions of Mrs. Dodds with talons and leathery wings would wake me up in a cold sweat.**

The futures grimaced those dreams were haunting.

**The freak weather continued, which didn't help my mood. One night, a thunderstorm blew out the windows in my dorm room. A few days later, the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down only fifty miles from Yancy Academy. One of the current events we studied in social studies class was the unusual number of small planes that had gone down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic that year.**

Once again all eyes turned to Zeus and Poseidon. Their gazes were boring into them and they unconsiously squirmed in their seats. Their wifes who were sitting next to them respectively had to keep in laughs. Amphitrite and Hera smiled this was great revenge/punishment!

**I started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time. My grades slipped from Ds to Fs.**

Theseus and Athena stared at Percy looking as if he had just beeen run down by a bus and not been hurt at _all_.

** I got into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her friends.**

"Good job, fighting is a good thing," Ares lectured Percy. Percy looked at his friends horrified and gave them a laugh of a lifetime.

**I was sent out into the hallway in almost every class.**

**Finally, when our English teacher, Mr. Nicoll, asked me for the millionth time why I was too lazy to study for spelling tests, I snapped. I called him an old sot.**

The futures laughed while everyone from the past frowned wondering what the word meant.

**I wasn't even sure what it meant, but it sounded good.**

"Athena?" Hestia asked and she thought deeply. Finally Athena shrugged "I don't know what it means." Poseidon gasped loudly "Olive doesn't _know_ something? The world is doomed!" He cried dramatically before Amphitrite elbowed and he sheepishly smiled. Athena glared "It's a word from the future! How am I supposed to know?" Poseidon shrugged "_You're _the goddess of wisdom. Why are you asking me?"

Thalia rolled her eyes Percy and Annabeth fighting had been enough. She didn't need the older versions to start to. "It means a drunk person, so may we move on?" Thalia cut in politely. They stopped glaring at each other and nodded sulking in their throne. Amphitrite looked at her husband amused. This was one side of him she had never seen before.

**The headmaster sent my mom a letter the following week, making it official: I would not be invited back next year to Yancy Academy.**

**Fine, I told myself. Just fine.**

**I was homesick.** **I wanted to be with my mom in our little apartment on the Upper East Side, even if I had to go to public school and put up with my obnoxious stepfather and his stupid poker parties.**

"I didn't know Paul was obnoxios or that he gambled," Nico said confused and hurt he hadn't known anything about it. Percy shook his head "My step-dad before Paul." Nico nodded while he and Thalia were both upset they didn't know about this detail before.

**And yet… there were things I'd miss at Yancy. The view of the woods out my dorm window, the Hudson River in the distance, the smell of pine trees. I'd miss Grover, who'd been a good friend, even if he was a little strange. I worried how he'd survive next year without me. ****I'd miss Latin class, too-Mr. Brunner's crazy tournament days and his faith that I could do well.**

The futures smiled, it was always nice to have someone who didn't treat you like an idiot.

**As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test I studied for.**

Theseus and Athena meekly shook their heads unable to speak. Ariadne watched his movements closely, he was the same as he used to be she decided. But this time she wouldn't lose self-control, besides she had Dionysus now and he was the one who helped her the most.

**I hadn't forgotten what Mr. Brunner had told me about this subject being life-and-death for me. I wasn't sure why, but I'd started to believe him.**

The past demigods nodded. Good, he would be dead if he didn't.

**The evening before my final, I got so frustrated I threw the Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology across my dorm room.**

Theseus frowned "Are those _books_ the same as papyrus scrolls?" Thalia nodded and Athena burst. "How could you treat knowledge material that way?!" Athne rolled her eyes "That's to be expected of a _sea spawn_." Theseus frowned "What do you mean?" Athena looked at him "I apologize but that one," she pointed at Percy "has gone exactly on his father. Just like most of his siblings, prideful and brainless. Some, not all." Theseus looked like he wanted to argue but held it in. After all Athena was a goddess.

**Words had started swimming off the page, circling my head, the letters doing one-eighties as if they were riding skateboards. There was no way I was going to remember the difference between Chiron and Charon,**

"Well I think he knows the difference now," Nico declared making Poseidon's eyes widen slightly. "That's true, but I mean't spelling wise, D-," Percy said and Thalia cut him off. "No saying nicknames which can reveal our godly parent!" she hissed "The Fates will get mad!"

**I paced the room, feeling like ants were crawling around inside my shirt. ****I remembered Mr. Brunner's serious expression, his thousand-year-old eyes. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson. ****I took a deep breath. I picked up the mythology book. ****I'd never asked a teacher for help before. Maybe if I talked to Mr. Brunner, he could give me some pointers. At least I could apologize for the big fat F I was about to score on his exam. I didn't want to leave Yancy Academy with him thinking I hadn't tried.**

**I walked downstairs to the faculty offices. Most of them were dark and empty, but Mr. Brunner's door was ajar, light from his window stretching across the hallway floor. ****I'm not usually an eavesdropper,****I was three steps from the door handle when I heard voices inside the office. Mr. Brunner asked a question. A voice that was definitely Grover's said "… worried about Percy, sir."**

**I froze. ****I'm not usually an eavesdropper,**

"Yeah right," Nico scoffed making Thalia wonder what he meant

**but I dare you to try not listening if you hear your best friend talking about you to an adult.**

"Tough bet," Zeus admitted and Hades and Poseidon stared at him. "You have a best friend?" The two asked innocently, secretly sharing high-fives. Zeus glowered and thunder boomed. Hera rolled her eyes "Those two are absoloutely correct, so please cut that out, so we can conitnue. Zeus open mouthed gaped at Hera, and when she didn't respond Zeus slouched in his throne and sulked. Poseidon and Hades were laughing their hearts out, but stopped when their wifes glared at them.

**I inched closer.**

**"… alone this summer," Grover was saying. "I mean, a Kindly One in the school! Now that we know for sure, and they know too-"**

**"We would only make matters worse by rushing him," Mr. Brunner said. "We need the boy to mature more."**

**"But he may not have time. The summer solstice deadline- "**

The people of the past frowned "What summer solstice deadline?" No answer.

**"Will have to be resolved without him, Grover. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can."**

**"Sir, he saw her… ."**

**"His imagination," Mr. Brunner insisted. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that."**

**"Sir, I … I can't fail in my duties again." Grover's voice was choked with emotion. "You know what that would mean."**

**"You haven't failed, Grover," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should have seen her for what she was. Now let's just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall-"**

**The mythology book dropped out of my hand and hit the floor with a thud.**

"Who's Mr. Brunner really? What duties? Fail again?" A flood of questions hit the futures, but they kept their mouth shut.

**The mythology book dropped out of my hand and hit the floor with a thud.**

"NO!" Hemes shouted "NEVER GIVE AWAY YOUR POSITION!" They all stared at Hemes, who huffed giving Percy a small yet thick black papyrus scroll. "  
The scroll that tells you everything you need to know about thievery, connviving and deception." Hermes told Percy proudly and was washed over by a five-foot wave of sea water. "You will not corrupt my son Hermes," Poseidon told him and Hermes nodded. "Of course Uncle P," but didn't back the scroll. Luckily no one but Percy noticed Hermes wink at him before sitting back down on his throne.

**A shadow slid across the lighted glass of Brunner's office door, the shadow of something much taller than my wheelchair-bound teacher, holding something that looked suspiciously like an archer's bow.**

"100 drachmas he gets caught?" Apollo asked making Hermes grin. "Deal."

**I opened the nearest door and slipped inside.**

**A few seconds later I heard a slow clop-clop-clop, like muffled wood blocks, then a sound like an animal snuffling right outside my door. A large, dark shape paused in front of the glass, then moved on.**

Hermes was about bto cheer when Apollo said "wait for it."

**A bead of sweat trickled down my neck.**

**Somewhere in the hallway, Mr. Brunner spoke. "Nothing," he murmured. "My nerves haven't been right since the winter solstice."**

"Yeah, I got 100 drachmas!" Hermes cheered and Apollo sadly gave it to him.

**"Mine neither," Grover said. "But I could have sworn …"**

**"Go back to the dorm," Mr. Brunner told him. "You've got a long day of exams tomorrow."**

**"Don't remind me."**

**The lights went out in Mr. Brunner's office.**

**I waited in the dark for what seemed like forever.**

**Finally, I slipped out into the hallway and made my way back up to the dorm.**

**Grover was lying on his bed, studying his Latin exam notes like he'd been there all night.**

**"Hey," he said, bleary-eyed. "You going to be ready for this test?"**

**I didn't answer.**

**"You look awful." He frowned. "Is everything okay?"**

**"Just… tired."**

**I turned so he couldn't read my expression, and started getting ready for bed.**

"Won't work," Hermes grimaced. "Pan gets me every time, thanks to the cursed ability. Handy, yet a pain."

**I didn't understand what I'd heard downstairs. I wanted to believe I'd imagined the whole thing.**

**But one thing was clear: Grover and Mr. Brunner were talking about me behind my back. They thought I was in some kind of danger.** **The next afternoon, as I was leaving the three-hour Latin exam,**

"Three hours?" Hercules asked unsteadily his head beginning to spin. Percy looked at him coldly but nodded. Zoe watched Percy carefully, why did _he_ dislike _him_?

my eyes swimming with all the Greek and Roman names I'd misspelled, Mr. Brunner called me back inside.

**For a moment, I was worried he'd found out about my eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.**

**"Percy," he said. "Don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy. It's … it's for the best."**

**His tone was kind, but the words still embarrassed me. Even though he was speaking quietly, the other kids finishing the test could hear. Nancy Bobofit smirked at me and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips.**

They all grimaced and shuddered stimtaneously.

**I mumbled, "Okay, sir."**

**"I mean …" Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth, like he wasn't sure what to say. "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time."**

**My eyes stung.**

"WIMP!" Ares shouted "You suck it up, or you can't survive." Percy looked like he'd rather die than continue to have Ares' "lessons". Poseidon wasn't sure if he should say anything or keep quiet. He decided it would be better to keep his mouth shut for three reasons. One, Percy didn't look like he wanted his help. Two, Zeus would keep blabbering about the Ancient Laws, and three. Amphitrite and Triton just might et super annoyed.

**Here was my favorite teacher, in front of the class, telling me I couldn't handle it. After saying he believed in me all year, now he was telling me I was destined to get kicked out.**

**"Right," I said, trembling.**

**"No, no," Mr. Brunner said. "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say … you're not normal, Percy. That's nothing to be-"**

Thalia glared at Percy "stop taking stuff the wrong way!"

**"Thanks," I blurted. "Thanks a lot, sir, for reminding me.**

**"Percy-"**

**But I was already gone.**

Her glare got harder.

**On the last day of the term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase.**

**The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One of them was going on a hiking trip to Switzerland. Another was cruising the Caribbean for a month. They were juvenile delinquents, like me, but they were rich juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. I was a nobody, from a family of nobodies.**

"HEY!" Zeus stood up "Poseidon may be a nobody but the rest of us are not." Everyone agreed with him for once. Percy shrugged "I didn't kwon you existed back then."

**They asked me what I'd be doing this summer and I told them I was going back to the city.**

**What I didn't tell them was that I'd have to get a summer job walking dogs or selling magazine subscriptions, and spend my free time worrying about where I'd go to school in the fall.**

**"Oh," one of the guys said. "That's cool."**

**They went back to their conversation as if I'd never existed.**

Demeter frowned those boys needed more bread!

**The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but as it turned out, I didn't have to. He'd booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as I had, so there we were, together again, heading into the city.**

Perseus looked surprised "why is he following you? If he's a satyr shouldn't he just tell you who you are?" The futures shrugged "Things happen differently in the future."

**During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle, watching the other passengers. It occurred to me that he'd always acted nervous and fidgety when we left Yancy, as if he expected something bad to happen. Before, I'd always assumed he was worried about getting teased. But there was nobody to tease him on the Greyhound.**

**Finally I couldn't stand it anymore.**

**I said, "Looking for Kindly Ones?"**

Everyone looked at the throne room floor, from where three old hags flew up. Percy looked at the one in the middle, about a millenium and she still looked the same. Ugly. "Aleto, Tisiphone, Megaera what are you three doing here?" Hades questioned them. Alecto spoke up "Forgive us my lord, we felt that someone was looking for us. So we assumed it was you." Persephone and Hades explained the situation to them. Tisiphone kept glancing at Nico and she smiled when she realized who he was. It would be nice to have a son of their lord around in the future. "May we listen my lord?" Megaera asked and Hades nodded. Tisiphone and Alecto flew up and perched on Hades' throne while Megaera went to Persephone.

**Grover nearly jumped out of his seat. "Wha-what do you mean?"**

The furies smirked maliciously. It was fun for them to hear about people being afraid of them.

**I confessed about eavesdropping on him and Mr. Brunner the night before the exam.**

Hermes' mouth flew open. _Read it!_ Hermes pleaded in Percy's mind.

**Grover's eye twitched. "How much did you hear?"**

**"Oh … not much. What's the summer solstice dead-line?"**

"Not much," Zpe scoffed "thou heard everything! _Boys_."

**He winced. "Look, Percy … I was just worried for you, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers …"**

**"Grover-"**

**"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and …"**

**"Grover, you're a really, really bad liar."**

Hermes looked more determined then ever. "Percy, I promise to you. I'll teach Pan how to lie, so all satyrs can lie!" The futures hoped he failed. If Grover knew how to lie... They shuddered, let's not say what would happen.

**His ears turned pink.**

**From his shirt pocket, he fished out a grubby business card. "Just take this, okay? In case you need me this summer.**

**The card was in fancy script, which was murder on my dyslexic eyes, but I finally made out something like:**

**Grover Underwood**

**Keeper**

**Half-Blood Hill**

**Long Island, New York**

**(800) 009-0009**

Athena frowned "Why is it in fancy script?" the future just shrugged. "Mr. D wanted it," Ariadne looked at her husband. He really didn't like heroes, or any demigods for that matter. "Why?" she asked softly. They deadpanned "He hates us." Suspictions confirmed.

**"What's Half-"**

**"Don't say it aloud!" he yelped. "That's my, um … summer address."**

**My heart sank. Grover had a summer home. I'd never considered that his family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.**

**"Okay," I said glumly. "So, like, if I want to come visit your mansion."**

**He nodded. "Or … or if you need me."**

**"Why would I need you?"**

Thalia started glaring at Percy again, who started looking guilty. "Percy," Thalia warned. "I'm mad but if you feel guilty, you'll be soory." Percy wiped away all emotion and put on a poker face. Thalia bit back a curse, now she didn't know what he was thinking.

**It came out harsher than I meant it to.**

**Grover blushed right down to his Adam's apple. "Look, Percy, the truth is, I-I kind of have to protect you."**

**I stared at him.**

**All year long, I'd gotten in fights, keeping bullies away from him. I'd lost sleep worrying that he'd get beaten up next year without me. And here he was acting like he was the one who defended me.**

The goddesses cooed, even Amphitrite and Hera.

**"Grover," I said, "what exactly are you protecting me from?"**

**There was a huge grinding noise under our feet. Black smoke poured from the dashboard and the whole bus filled with a smell like rotten eggs. The driver cursed and limped the Greyhound over to the side of the highway.**

**After a few minutes clanking around in the engine compartment, the driver announced that we'd all have to get off. Grover and I filed outside with everybody else.**

**We were on a stretch of country road-no place you'd notice if you didn't break down there. On our side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand.**

**The stuff on sale looked really good: heaping boxes of bloodred cherries and apples, walnuts and apricots, jugs of cider in a claw-foot tub full of ice. There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks I'd ever seen.**

EVeryone's breath hitched. He saw them, but NO. They all glanced at Percy, he was alive, then why? Percy was puzzeld as to why Thalia and Nico were doing the same thing when he realized he never told them about it. "Guys, don't worry you'll find out later." They blinked in surprise but nodded.

**I mean these socks were the size of sweaters, but they were clearly socks. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.**

**All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.**

**The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right at me.**

Poseidon's eyes held a glint of fear in them. Even the furies felt bad, the fates wouldn't do that to someone that didn't even know about their world yet, would they?

**I looked over at Grover to say something about this and saw that the blood had drained from his face. His nose was twitching.**

**"Grover?" I said. "Hey, man-"**

**"Tell me they're not looking at you. They are, aren't they?"**

**"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?"**

"Not funny Percy," Nico grit out.

**"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all."**

No one laughed. The atosphere grew thicker.

**The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors-gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears. I heard Grover catch his breath. ****"We're getting on the bus," he told me. "Come on."**

_Yes! GO!_ Everyone thought. They didn't know Percy well but they didn't want him to die just yet. The furies though shook their heads. "It won't work, if the Fates want something to happen, it will happen."

**"What?" I said. "It's a thousand degrees in there."**

**"Come on!'" He pried open the door and climbed inside, but I stayed back.**

**Across the road, the old ladies were still watching me. The middle one cut the yarn, and I swear I could hear that snip across four lanes of traffic.**

Everyone gasped, but remembering Percy's words tried to stay calm.

Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks, leaving me wondering who they could possibly be for-Sasquatch or Godzilla.

**At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk of smoking metal out of the engine compartment. The bus shuddered, and the engine roared back to life.**

**The passengers cheered.**

**"Darn right!" yelled the driver. He slapped the bus with his hat. "Everybody back on board!"**

**Once we got going, I started feeling feverish, as if I'd caught the flu.**

Tisiphone bowed her head "The first signs."

**Grover didn't look much better. He was shivering and his teeth were chattering.**

**"Grover?"**

**"Yeah?"**

**"What are you not telling me?"**

"Everything." Athena spoke.

**He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "Percy, what did you see back at the fruit stand?"**

**"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them, man? They're not like … Mrs. Dodds, are they?"**

**His expression was hard to read, but I got the feeling that the fruit-stand ladies were something much, much worse than Mrs. Dodds. He said, "Just tell me what you saw."**

**"The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn."**

**He closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers that might've been crossing himself, but it wasn't. It was something else, something almost-older.**

Artemis' eyes widened, the boy was observant.

**He said, "You saw her snip the cord."**

**"Yeah. So?" But even as I said it, I knew it was a big deal.**

**"This is not happening," Grover mumbled. He started chewing at his thumb. "I don't want this to be like the last time."**

**"What last time?"**

Thalia grit her teeth. "If he still blames himself in our timeline, I'll beat him up. I swear on the Styx it was my choice, not his fault!"

**"Always sixth grade. They never get past sixth."**

**"Grover," I said, because he was really starting to scare me. "What are you talking about?"**

**"Let me walk you home from the bus station. Promise me."**

**This seemed like a strange request to me, but I promised he could.**

"I hate to say this but I don't think he'll keep that promise." Triton stated.

**"Is this like a superstition or something?" I asked.**

**No answer.**

**"Grover-that snipping of the yarn. Does that mean somebody is going to die?"**

**He looked at me mournfully, like he was already picking the kind of flowers I'd like best on my coffin.**

Thesues closed the book. "That was the end of the chapter." No one spoke, they were too shaken by what had just happened. Then a bright light filled the throne room and Percy had disappeared. Their eyes widened when a note flew down. Athena picked it up.

_Sorry if we startled you all. It's just that Percy is needed for an important event, by a very important goddess. So we had no choice. We'll try to bring him back soon. Continue reading in the meantime. Thalia, Nico do not worry he is going to be fine._

Everyone nodded. "I'll read next." Athena volunteered. Hera nodded "Two more chapters and then we'll take a break." Athena took the book opening it to chapter three...

**Chapter 3: Grover Unexpectedly Loses His Pants**

**Sorry, again if I took too long to upload. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Reviews are welcome and by the way should I bring Percy back after the Son of Neptune or The Mark of Athena? Let me know what you think!**

**Bye for now!**

**~Sakuya~**


	4. Chapter 4

**You know are my "Excuses" lame? Well they are true. This time my computer shut down, completely not my fault. Anyways new chapter's up!**

**Disclaimer: Me: Nico! Could you do it for me?**

**Nico: Ah fine, CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO, any of it's characters or the books she's making us read**

**Me: And don't forget Percy went back to present time so he isn't in the story**

**Both: Enjoy**

_"I'll read next." Athena volunteered. Hera nodded "Two more chapters and then we'll take a break." Athena took the book opening it to chapter three..._**Grover Unexpectedly Loses His Pants**

**Confession time: I ditched Grover as soon as we got to the bus terminal.**

"Percy!" Thalia, Nico, Theseus, Orion, Perseus, Poseidon, Demeter and Hera groaned. "You shouldn't break your promises," Hera scolded the book making everyone gape. Athena read on to avoid having anyone feel delusional and have to go to the infirmary.

**I know, I know. It was rude. But Grover was freaking me out, looking at me like I was a dead man, muttering "Why does this always happen?" and "Why does it always have to he sixth grade?"**

Thalia and Nico sighed "Guess we can't hold that against him. After all if Grover had done that when he found us, we would've ditched him a long time ago." The rest of the demigods and gods looked at the two wondering how many secrets these books held.

**Whenever he got upset, Grover's bladder acted up, so I wasn't surprised when, as soon as we got off the bus, he made me promise to wait for him, then made a beeline for the restroom. Instead of waiting, I got my suitcase, slipped outside, and caught the first taxi uptown.**

**"East One-hundred-and-fourth and First," I told the driver.**

Hermes grinned, but before he could say a word Artemis stopped him. "Hermes the city doesn't exist much less his home, so no you cannot go rob him." Hermes pouted, then shrugged "Tip for the future."

"Hermes you will not rob my son." Poseidon spoke and Hermes nodded.

**A word about my mother, before you meet her.**

"Awesome."

"Incredible."

"She's a superhuman." Nico and Thalia spoke together.

**Her name is Sally Jackson and she's the best person in the world, which just proves my theory that the best people have the rottenest luck.**

"Just like us!" Nico exclaimed happily. Hercules rolled his eyes but nodded. "In fact Percy, Thalia, Perseus and me are the best people I know." Nico agreed. "Hey!" Theseus and Orion objected and Hercules looked at Nico pointedly. Zoe glared _arrogant bastard_. "Right," Nico amended "Percy, Thalia, Perseus, Theseus, Orion and me are the best people I know. No more, no less."

**Her own parents died in a plane crash when she was five,**

Cue glares at Zeus **(A/N let's just say that the futures gave the people of the past a basic understanding of future stuff)**

** and she was raised by an uncle who didn't care much about her. She wanted to be a novelist, so she spent high school working to save enough money for a college with a good creative-writing program. **

Athena gasped "Coral Face, how'd you get such a smart woman to like you?!" Poseidon shrugged "I don't know, future remember." Theseus and Orion tried to not feel hurt about the implication that their mothers weren't smart, while Amphitrite glared. Had Athena forgotten she was sitting right here? Triton looked extremely bored, maybe Athena was right, I mean his mother did blow a gasket whenever he was being rude or something. He was a god, who cares about minor spirits?

**Then her uncle got cancer, and she had to quit school her senior year to take care ****of him. After he died, she was left with no money, no family, and no diploma.**

Athena frowned, "Hmm," she mused "Maybe I should give this woman my blessing. She seems to deserve it." Athena nodded reaching a decision "I will, in the future I will." Thalia and Nico smiled "We're sure Percy and Mrs. Blofis will appreciate that Lady Athena."

**The only good break she ever got was meeting my dad.**

Amphitrite and Triton were glaring so harshly even Aphrodite didn't make comment about how sweet that was. Well who could blame them? What wife/son would want to hear about the woman their husband/father cheated on them/their mother with?

**I don't have any memories of him, just this sort of warm glow, maybe the barest trace of his smile. My mom doesn't like to talk about him because it makes her sad. She has no pictures.**

**See, they weren't married. She told me he was rich and important, and their relationship was a secret. Then one day, he set sail across the Atlantic on some important journey, and he never came back.**

**Lost at sea, my mom told me. Not dead. Lost at sea.**

Hermes grinned "Lie but not a lie, interesting woman." Artemis glared "I doubt she'd want another demigod on her hands Hermes." Thalia smiled "Percy already has a step-dad, so sorry Lord Hermes." Nico nodded "Paul's amazing!" Everyone else but Thalia only had one question _Who the Hades was Paul?_ Of course Hades wasn't very happy about everyone using his name to swear, neither was Persephone and the furies.

**She worked odd jobs, took night classes to get her high school diploma, and raised me on her own. She never complained or got mad. Not even once. But I knew I wasn't an easy kid.**

Zoe rolled her eyes "What boy is?"

**Finally, she married Gabe Ugliano, who was nice the first thirty seconds we knew him, then showed his true colors as a world-class jerk.**** When I was young, I nicknamed him Smelly Gabe. I'm sorry, but it's the truth. The guy reeked like moldy garlic pizza wrapped in gym shorts.**

Hermes looked hurt "That is the stepdad who is better than me?" Thalia and Nico looked horrified "WHAT! That Gabe guy isn't Percy's stepdad Paul is!" They were dumbfounded.

**Between the two of us, we made my mom's life pretty hard. The way Smelly Gabe treated her, the way he and I got along … well, when I came home is a good example.**

**I walked into our little apartment, hoping my mom would be home from work. Instead, Smelly Gabe was in the living room, playing poker with his buddies. The television blared ESPN. Chips and beer cans were strewn all over the carpet.**

Aphrodite looked slightly green. Hephaestus awkwardly patted her shoukder while Ares glared.

**Hardly looking up, he said around his cigar, "So, you're home."**

**"Where's my mom?"**

**"Working," he said. "You got any cash?"**

"That's horrible parenting! Why would any woman continue a marrige with that guy. Even I'd ask for a divorce and I'm the goddess of Marrige!" Hera spat disgusted making everyone stare at her. The goddess who hated demigods just defended one. The world was about to end. Athena shuddered before she continued to read. Hestia smiled it was nice to see that Hera was caring a bit more. Now she just hoped none of the gods got a heart attack.

**That was it. No Welcome back. Good to see you. How has your life been the last six months?**

**Gabe had put on weight. He looked like a tuskless walrus in thrift-store clothes. He had about three hairs on his head, all combed over his bald scalp, as if that made him handsome or something. **

"Ew!" Aphrodite shrieked "Not even I can help that disaster."

**He managed the Electronics Mega-Mart in Queens, but he stayed home most of the time. I don't know why he hadn't been fired long before. He just kept on collecting paychecks, spending the money on cigars that made me nauseous, and on beer, of course. Always beer. Whenever I was home, he expected me to provide his gambling funds. He called that our "guy secret." Meaning, if I told my mom, he would punch my lights out.**

Everyone's eyes darkened. No one asked since they all had problems in the pas, and besided Percy wasn't there. But was it so bad that everyone wanted to smash Gabe's head in a wall? Even Triton was annoyed and he wasn't really liking Percy, even his dad wasn't that bad. Sure Poseidon ignored him but that!

**"I don't have any cash," I told him.**

**He raised a greasy eyebrow.**

**Gabe could sniff out money like a bloodhound, which was surprising, since his own smell should've covered up everything else.**

**"You took a taxi from the bus station," he said. Probably paid with a twenty. Got six, seven bucks in change. Somebody expects to live under this roof, he ought to carry his own weight. Am I right, Eddie?"**

**Eddie, the super of the apartment building, looked at me with a twinge of sympathy. "Come on, Gabe," he said. "The kid just got here."**

"Maybe he doesn't need too much bread," Demeter approved. Nico looked at her weirdly "Bread?" Demeter smiled "Yes, bread it's good for you." Nico paled and slowly backed away towards Hades and Persephone. "_Hey, you two."_ Nico hissed making Hades and Persephone looked down at surprise while Tisiphone gazed at them. _"If she tries to give everyone cere- bread whatever you are going to save me. In the name of Zeus she tried to choke me with that stuff before. You will save me!"_ Persephone and Hades shared a glance before shrugging. They couldn't save themselves half the time. How were they supposed to save the kid? Megaera looked amused and thought to herself _'Do not worry my lord. I will protect you.'_

**"Am I right?" Gabe repeated.**

**Eddie scowled into his bowl of pretzels. The other two guys passed gas in harmony.**

Demeter gagged "Never mind,"

**"Fine," I said. I dug a wad of dollars out of my pocket and threw the money on the table. "I hope you lose."**

Dionysus grinned "That won't be a problem, now will it Hermes?" Hermes had the same evil look "Not at all D, not at all," Dionysus muttered a curse at him. Ariadne looked at her husband _"My lord, you're changing. You don't hate demigods as much now. I'm glad."_

**"Your report card came, brain boy!" **

Theseus and Athena shook their heads "He shouldn't be talking,"

**h****e shouted after me. "I wouldn't act so snooty!"**

**I slammed the door to my room, which really wasn't my room. During school months, it was Gabe's "study." **

Raised eyebrows. Study what? The _How to be a Jerk_ guide or the _The Bastard's Handbook_?

**He didn't study anything in there except old car magazines, but he loved shoving my stuff in the closet, leaving his muddy boots on my windowsill, and doing his best to make the place smell like his nasty cologne and cigars and stale beer.**

Thalia glared, her mother typically did the same. How did Percy survive for so long? She only stuck around because of- right his mom. Percy was too loyal.

**I dropped my suitcase on the bed. Home sweet home.**

"Even in the worst of places his sarcasm is still intact," Orion marveled and Nico scoffed. "Oh if you think this is bad you have no idea what else Percy can think up."

**Gabe's smell was almost worse than the nightmares about Mrs. Dodds, or the sound of that old fruit lady's shears snipping the yarn.**

Alecto huffed "Should I feel offended he finds that thing more terrifying than me?" Hades glanced at her "No," Alecto bowed awkwardly. "Yes, my lord." The demigods tried not to laugh at the fury bowing. Of course the only one able to manage that was Nico, probably because ha had seen that happen so often.

**But as soon as I thought that, my legs felt weak. I remembered Grover's look of panic-how he'd made me promise I wouldn't go home without him. A sudden chill rolled through me. I felt like someone-something-was looking for me right now, maybe pounding its way up the stairs, growing long, horrible talons.**

**Then I heard my mom's voice. "Percy?"**

**She opened the bedroom door, and my fears melted.  
**

"Aww," Aphrodite cooed "He is so sweet." Amphitrite thought hard, as she heard Hera going on about how she wished her children would act like that. If the boy was so kind, perhaps she could try to talk to him. Be a good stepmom.

**My mother can make me feel good just by walking into the room. Her eyes sparkle and change color in the light. Her smile is as warm as a quilt. She's got a few gray streaks mixed in with her long brown hair, but I never think of her as old. When she looks at me, it's like she's seeing all the good things about me, none of the bad. I've never heard her raise her voice or say an unkind word to anyone, not even me or Gabe.**

Artemis went rigid "How in the Hades," she muttered. Artemis ignored the engraged "Hey!" from her uncle.

**"Oh, Percy." She hugged me tight. "I can't believe it. You've grown since Christmas!"**

**Her red-white-and-blue Sweet on America uniform smelled like the best things in the world: chocolate, licorice, and all the other stuff she sold at the candy shop in Grand Central. She'd brought me a huge bag of "free samples," the way she always did when I came home.**

Nico and Thalia drooled "I'm glad Ms. Blofis cares about us too."  
"Yeah, she is the most awesome person ever!"

**We sat together on the edge of the bed. While I attacked the blueberry sour strings, she ran her hand through my hair and demanded to know everything I hadn't put in my letters. She didn't mention anything about my getting expelled. She didn't seem to care about that. But was I okay? Was her little boy doing all right?**

**I told her she was smothering me, and to lay off and all that, but secretly, I was really, really glad to see her.**

Zoe rolled her eyes "Boys," Artemis nodded. Thalia bowed her head, she was glad the Fates didn't make her say who she was just yet. Her Lady would definitely change her mind at the end of these books. Zoe would too, not all boys Zoe had told her.

**From the other room, Gabe yelled, "Hey, Sally-how about some bean dip, huh?"**

**I gritted my teeth.**

Nico once again restrained Thalia.

**My mom is the nicest lady in the world. She should've been married to a millionaire, not to some jerk like Gabe.**

"Or a God." Hermes suggested. Nico shook his head "Nah, Ms. Blofis likes English teachers."

**For her sake, I tried to sound upbeat about my last days at Yancy Academy. I told her I wasn't too down about the expulsion. I'd lasted almost the whole year this time. I'd made some new friends. I'd done pretty well in Latin. And honestly, the fights hadn't been as bad as the headmaster said. I liked Yancy Academy. I really did. I put such a good spin on the year, I almost convinced myself. I started choking up, thinking about Grover and Mr. Brunner. Even Nancy Bobofit suddenly didn't seem so bad.**

**Until that trip to the museum …**

**"What?" my mom asked. Her eyes tugged at my conscience, trying to pull out the secrets. "Did something scare you?"**

**"No, Mom."**

Hera frowned in worry "You shouldn't lie to your mother!" Everyone leaned away from her, even Zeus. Amphitrite frowned if Hera could worry about this b- Percy and Hera despised all demigods. Then she could be not too cold to him right?

**I felt bad lying. **

"You should," Hera approved making everyone start movivg their thrones away from her.

**I wanted to tell her about Mrs. Dodds and the three old ladies with the yarn, but I thought it would sound stupid.**

"No it wouldn't." Nico and Thalia said in a creepy voice "She can seeee." The gods looked at the two of them, "See what?" Hercules asked, "The Mist."

**She pursed her lips. She knew I was holding back, but she didn't push me.**

**"I have a surprise for you," she said. "We're going to the beach."**

**My eyes widened. "Montauk?"**

**"Three nights-same cabin."**

**"When?"**

**She smiled. "As soon as I get changed."**

**I couldn't believe it. My mom and I hadn't been to Montauk the last two summers, because Gabe said there wasn't enough money.**

"I bet I know where it went." Thalia said bitterly.

**Gabe appeared in the doorway and growled, "Bean dip, Sally? Didn't you hear me?"**

**I wanted to punch him,**

"DO IT!" Ares, Thalia, Nico and Poseidon encouraged. Everyone looked at the four, Ares they could understand but the rest? The world was now in grave danger of being destroyed.

**but I met my mom's eyes and I understood she was offering me a deal: be nice to Gabe for a little while. Just until she was ready to leave for Montauk. Then we would get out of here.**

"Awww," came the groan from the four making everyone wonder if they (omit Ares) were still sane.

**"I was on my way, honey," she told Gabe. "We were just talking about the trip."**

**Gabe's eyes got small. "The trip? You mean you were serious about that?"**

**"I knew it," I muttered. "He won't let us go."**

"Oh he better, or else," the threat was repeated a number of times arounf the throne room.

**"Of course he will," my mom said evenly. "Your stepfather is just worried about money. That's all. Besides," she added, "Gabriel won't have to settle for bean dip. I'll make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works."**

"Bribery," Hermes admired "But I don't think she should have to," he continued. Athena thought to herself _'this confirms it. With these books everyone is changing.'_

**Gabe softened a bit. "So this money for your trip … it comes out of your clothes budget, right?"**

Aphrodite screamed so loud all of Olympus, below the mountain and cities all over Greece the mortals nearly went deaf. "Y-y-you can't put a budget on clothes!" Hephaestus patted her arm, calming her down. Everyone else took out the ear plugs that had magically appeared in their ears and continued reading.

**"Yes, honey," my mother said.**

**"And you won't take my car anywhere but there and back."**

**"We'll be very careful."**

**Gabe scratched his double chin. "Maybe if you hurry with that seven-layer dip … And maybe if the kid apologizes for interrupting my poker game." **

Thalia grit her teeth "Interrupt, interrupt? In the name of Zeus he was the one who paid for it!" Suddenly Zeus knew how Hades felt when everyone used his name for a curse word. Oh Zeus you'll have that feeling a lot.

**Maybe if I kick you in your soft spot, I thought.**

**And make you sing soprano for a week.**

The furies smirked "Those things aren't bad for the Fields of Punishment," Alecto commented as Megaera jotted them down. "The boy's actually giving us ideas. Our work is suddenly easier."

**But my mom's eyes warned me not to make him mad.**

**Why did she put up with this guy? I wanted to scream. Why did she care what he thought?**

"Wouldn't we like to know," everyone muttered.

**"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I'm really sorry I interrupted your incredibly important poker game. Please go back to it right now."**

**Gabe's eyes narrowed. His tiny brain was probably trying to detect sarcasm in my statement.**

"If he can't figure that out, then he must be the stupidest creature on the planet." Nico stated.

**"Yeah, whatever," he decided.**

**He went back to his game.**

"He is officially the stupidest creature on the planet." Nico and Thalia declared. Zoe rolled her eyes "Fitting for a man. if that thing is classified as a man."

**"Thank you, Percy," my mom said. "Once we get to Montauk, we'll talk more about… whatever you've forgotten to tell me, okay?"**

**For a moment, I thought I saw anxiety in her eyes-the same fear I'd seen in Grover during the bus ride-as if my mom too felt an odd chill in the air.**

**But then her smile returned, and I figured I must have been mistaken. She ruffled my hair and went to make Gabe his seven-layer dip.**

**An hour later we were ready to leave.**

**Gabe took a break from his poker game long enough to watch me lug my mom's bags to the car. He kept griping and groaning about losing her cooking-and more important, his '78 Camaro-for the whole weekend.**

Hestia glared "Watch, not help?" Artemis looked at her "Auntie Hestia, he's worse than a man it's fine." Everyone's eyes widened. Artemis hated men so if this thing was worse. They all shuddered even Zoe.

**"Not a scratch on this car, brain boy," he warned me as I loaded the last bag. "Not one little scratch."**

"Like he'd be the one driving Valcas," Triton muttered.

******Like I'd be the one driving. I was twelve.**

Everyone laughed at the look on Triton's face.

**But that didn't matter to Gabe. If a seagull so much as pooped on his paint job, he'd find a way to blame me.**

******Watching him lumber back toward the apartment building, I got so mad I did something I can't explain. As Gabe reached the doorway, I made the hand gesture I'd seen Grover make on the bus, a sort of warding-off-evil gesture, a clawed hand over my heart, then a shoving movement toward Gabe. The screen door slammed shut so hard it whacked him in the butt and sent him flying up the staircase as if he'd been shot from a cannon. **

They all stared at the book. Even Thalia and Nico, they had known Percy was powerful, but that much? That young too?

**Maybe it was just the wind, or some freak accident with the hinges, but I didn't stay long enough to find out.**

**I got in the Camaro and told my mom to step on it.**

They all laughed at the way Percy put it.

**Our rental cabin was on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long Island. It was a little pastel box with faded curtains, half sunken into the dunes. There was always sand in the sheets and spiders in the cabinets**

Athena shuddered before continuing to read.

**, and most of the time the sea was too cold to swim in.**

"As if that would bother you," Theseus commented

**I loved the place.**

"Of course you would," Orion grinned

**We'd been going there since I was a baby. My mom had been going even longer. She never exactly said, but I knew why the beach was special to her. It was the place where she'd met my dad.**

Everyone glanced at Amphitrite and Poseidon. _'Still sweet'_ Aphrodite thought. _'Poseidon was pink for a split second'_.

**As we got closer to Montauk, she seemed to grow younger, years of worry and work disappearing from her face. Her eyes turned the color of the sea.**

Amphitrite's eyes widened, that was a new thing in the women her husband chose to cheat on her with.

**We got there at sunset, opened all the cabin's windows, and went through our usual cleaning routine. We walked on the beach, fed blue corn chips to the seagulls, and munched on blue jelly beans, blue saltwater taffy, and all the other free samples my mom had brought from work.**

"Why blue," Zeus whined, "That's my colour he's green!"

**I guess I should explain the blue food.**

Zeus flushed.

**See, Gabe had once told my mom there was no such thing. They had this fight, which seemed like a really small thing at the time. But ever since, my mom went out of her way to eat blue. She baked blue birthday cakes. She mixed blueberry smoothies. She bought blue-corn tortilla chips and brought home blue candy from the shop. This-along with keeping her maiden name, Jackson, rather than calling herself Mrs. Ugliano-was proof that she wasn't totally suckered by Gabe. She did have a rebellious streak, like me.**

"Streak?" Thalia scoffed

"He's got somthing called an obedience streak," Nico finished.

**When it got dark, we made a fire. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. Mom told me stories about when she was a kid, back before her parents died in the plane crash. She told me about the books she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.**

**Eventually, I got up the nerve to ask about what was always on my mind whenever we came to Montauk-my father. Mom's eyes went all misty. I figured she would tell me the same things she always did, but I never got tired of hearing them.**

**"He was kind, Percy," she said. "Tall, handsome, and powerful. But gentle, too. You have his black hair, you know, and his green eyes."**

Everyone looked at Poseidon and then conjured up a image of Percy. "She's right," Demeter commented.

**Mom fished a blue jelly bean out of her candy bag. "I wish he could see you, Percy. He would be so proud."**

No one said a word.

**I wondered how she could say that. What was so great about me? A dyslexic, hyperactive boy with a D+ report card, kicked out of school for the sixth time in six years.**

Again everyone kept quiet.

How old was I?" I asked. "I mean … when he left?"

**She watched the flames. "He was only with me for one summer, Percy. Right here at this beach. This cabin."**

**"But… he knew me as a baby."**

**"No, honey. He knew I was expecting a baby, but he never saw you. He had to leave before you were born."**

**I tried to square that with the fact that I seemed to remember … something about my father. A warm glow. A smile.**

**I had always assumed he knew me as a baby. My mom had never said it outright, but still, I'd felt it must be true. Now, to be told that he'd never even seen me …**

Poseidon looked down sadly while the futures glared at Zeus, especially Thalia.

**I felt angry at my father. Maybe it was stupid, but I resented him for going on that ocean voyage, for not having the guts to marry my mom. He'd left us, and now we were stuck with Smelly Gabe.**

Poseidon flinched slightly.

**"Are you going to send me away again?" I asked her. "To another boarding school?"**

**She pulled a marshmallow from the fire.**

**"I don't know, honey." Her voice was heavy. "I think … I think we'll have to do something."**

**"Because you don't want me around?"**

"Percy!" Hera said shocked.

**I regretted the words as soon as they were out.**

"At least he realizes that was bad."

**My mom's eyes welled with tears. She took my hand, squeezed it tight. "Oh, Percy, no. I-I have to, honey. For your own good. I have to send you away."**

**Her words reminded me of what Mr. Brunner had said-that it was best for me to leave Yancy.**

**"Because I'm not normal," I said.**

"Percy, even for a demigod you're not normal. That isn't a bad thing." Thalia told the book. No one told her she was talking to a book.

**"You say that as if it's a bad thing, Percy. But you don't realize how important you are. I thought Yancy Academy would be far enough away. I thought you'd finally be safe."**

**"Safe from what?"**

**She met my eyes, and a flood of memories came back to me-all the weird, scary things that had ever happened to me, some of which I'd tried to forget.**

**During third grade, a man in a black trench coat had stalked me on the playground. When the teachers threatened to call the police, he went away growling, but no one believed me when I told them that under his broad-brimmed hat, the man only had one eye, right in the middle of his head.**

"A cyclops? Why is a cyclops stalking Percy?" Poseidon shrugged. "Not all Cyclops are good," Thalia mumbled.

**Before that-a really early memory. I was in preschool, and a teacher accidentally put me down for a nap in a cot that a snake had slithered into. My mom screamed when she came to pick me up and found me playing with a limp, scaly rope I'd somehow managed to strangle to death with my meaty toddler hands.**

Zoe and Hercules' eyes widened. That was what he did... Looks like this demigod wasn't completely worthless. He better be different!, was the only thought inside of Zoe's head.

**In every single school, something creepy had happened, something unsafe, and I was forced to move.**

**I knew I should tell my mom about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds at the art museum, about my weird hallucination that I had sliced my math teacher into dust with a sword. But I couldn't make myself tell her. I had a strange feeling the news would end our trip to Montauk, and I didn't want that.**

**"I've tried to keep you as close to me as I could," my mom said. "They told me that was a mistake. But there's only one other option, Percy-the place your father wanted to send you. And I just… I just can't stand to do it."**

**"My father wanted me to go to a special school?"**

**"Not a school," she said softly. "A summer camp."**

"Camp- Half-Blood!" Thalia sang. Nico looked at her _creepy._

**My head was spinning. Why would my dad-who hadn't even stayed around long enough to see me born- talk to my mom about a summer camp? And if it was so important, why hadn't she ever mentioned it before?**

**"I'm sorry, Percy," she said, seeing the look in my eyes. "But I can't talk about it. I-I couldn't send you to that place. It might mean saying good-bye to you for good."**

**"For good? But if it's only a summer camp …"**

**She turned toward the fire, and I knew from her expression that if I asked her any more questions she would start to cry.**

**That night I had a vivid dream.**

The futures shuddered "Lord Apollo his dreams are so vivid sometimes we wonder if he's a legacy of yours."

**It was storming on the beach, and two beautiful animals, a white horse and a golden eagle, were trying to kill each other at the edge of the surf. The eagle swooped down and slashed the horse's muzzle with its huge talons. The horse reared up and kicked at the eagles wings. As they fought, the ground rumbled, and a monstrous voice chuckled somewhere beneath the earth, goading the animals to fight harder.**

Eyes went ontp Zeus, Poseidon and Hades.

**I ran toward them, knowing I had to stop them from killing each other, but I was running in slow motion. I knew I would be too late. I saw the eagle dive down, its beak aimed at the horse's wide eyes, and I screamed, No!**

"Yay! I win!" Zeus cried doing a happy dance. Now people started moving away from him.

**I woke with a start.**

**Outside, it really was storming, the kind of storm that cracks trees and blows down houses. There was no horse or eagle on the beach, just lightning making false daylight, and twenty-foot waves pounding the dunes like artillery.**

**With the next thunderclap, my mom woke. She sat up, eyes wide, and said, "Hurricane."**

**I knew that was crazy. Long Island never sees hurricanes this early in the summer. But the ocean seemed to have forgotten. Over the roar of the wind, I heard a distant bellow, an angry, tortured sound that made my hair stand on end.**

**Then a much closer noise, like mallets in the sand. A desperate voice-someone yelling, pounding on our cabin door.**

**My mother sprang out of bed in her nightgown and threw open the lock.**

**Grover stood framed in the doorway against a backdrop of pouring rain. But he wasn't… he wasn't exactly Grover.**

"Then what is he?" Apollo asked in a creepy and diturbing voice. Artemis smacked him.

**"Searching all night," he gasped. "What were you thinking?"**

**My mother looked at me in terror-not scared of Grover, but of why he'd come.**

**"Percy," she said, shouting to be heard over the rain. "What happened at school? What didn't you tell me?"**

**I was frozen, looking at Grover. I couldn't understand what I was seeing.**

**"O Zeu kai alloi theoi!" he yelled. "It's right behind me! Didn't you tell her?"**

**I was too shocked to register that he'd just cursed in Ancient Greek, and I'd understood him perfectly. I was too shocked to wonder how Grover had gotten here by himself in the middle of the night. Because Grover didn't have his pants on-and where his legs should be … where his legs should be …**

"Say it already!"

**My mom looked at me sternly and talked in a tone she'd never used before: "Percy. Tell me now!"**

**I stammered something about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds, and my mom stared at me, her face deathly pale in the flashes of lightning.**

**She grabbed her purse, tossed me my rain jacket, and said, "Get to the car. Both of you. Go!"**

**Grover ran for the Camaro-but he wasn't running, exactly. He was trotting, shaking his shaggy hindquarters, and suddenly his story about a muscular disorder in his legs made sense to me. I understood how he could run so fast and still limp when he walked.**

**Because where his feet should be, there were no feet. There were cloven hooves.**

"Finally, Thank the gods!" Dionysus groaned. Apollo smiled "Your welcome D." Apollo then earned himself a death glare. "Well that's the end of the chapter." Athena announced. Hera nodded "Alright we'll read one more chapter and then go to sleep." Everyone nodded. "I'll read," Amphitrite stood up, _'I need some time to think about this. Reading will distract me,'_ she thought. Amphitrite flipped to chapter four.

**Chapter 4: My Mother Teaches Me Bullfighting**

**Well I hope this chapter was just as amusing as the rest. Bye everyone, hope to update again soon! Please review, and I need more answers. Percy comes back after his quest in the Roman camp or after he falls in Tartarus? I'd appreciate it!**

**~Sakuya~**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm Baaaack! The next chapter is here! This is an apology chapter for not updating sooner, so I uploaded today! **

**Disclaimer: Me: Who, who will do it for me?**

**Zoe: CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO, any of it's characters or these books we are reading for she is not a _boy_**

**Me: Thank you Zoe, even if you popped out of no where**

**Zoe: No problem anything to help out another maiden**

**Both: Enjoy the story!**

_"I'll read," Amphitrite stood up, 'I need some time to think about this. Reading will distract me,' she thought. Amphitrite flipped to chapter_ four...**My Mother Teaches Me Bullfighting**

"I didn't know Mrs. Blofis could bull-fight!" Nico exclaimed, "Me neither," Thalia said in worry.

**We tore through the night along dark country roads. Wind slammed against the Camaro. Rain lashed the windshield. I didn't know how my mom could see anything, but she kept her foot on the gas.**

Ares nodded "That's how you should drive, just like I do on my chariot." Hephaestus rolled his eyes "That's also why you need to get it repaired 24/7." Apollo snickered "And why you need to be healed 24/7." Ares scowled.

**Every time there was a flash of lightning, I looked at Grover sitting next to me in the backseat and I wondered if I'd gone insane, or if he was wearing some kind of shag-carpet pants.**

Aphrodite wrinkled her nose "Why and when would anyone wear that?" Thalia shrugged "Never, it's one of Percy's weird references." Hermes laughed "Pan would be so mad right now!" No one noticed Nico looking at the ground guiltily.

**But, no, the smell was one I remembered from kindergarten field trips to the petting zoo- lanolin, like from wool. The smell of a wet barnyard animal.**

Hermes looked solemn "Pan will hate that!" He burst out in laughter at the end, making everyone else crack up.

**All I could think to say was, "So, you and my mom… know each other?"**

"The first thing he says, is that?" Perseus shook his head.

**Graver's eyes flitted to the rearview mirror, though there were no cars behind us. "Not exactly," he said. "I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you."**

"Stalker," Nico whispered making Thalia hit him on the head. The furies looked at Nico, he was different maybe it was because of his mother.

**"Watching me?"**

"Stalker,"

**"Keeping tabs on you. **

"Stalker,"

**Making sure you were okay. But I wasn't faking being your friend," he added hastily. "I am your friend."**

**"Um … what are you, exactly?"**

**"That doesn't matter right now."**

**"It doesn't matter? From the waist down, my best friend is a donkey-"**

"Percy my boy," Hermes fake sobbed "thank the gods you aren't here or you might've revoked Pan's wrath." Apollo grinned "You are welcome."

**Grover let out a sharp, throaty "Blaa-ha-ha!"**

**I'd heard him make that sound before, but I'd always assumed it was a nervous laugh. Now I realized it was more of an irritated bleat.**

**"Goat!" he cried.**

**"What?"**

**"I'm a goat from the waist down."**

"But he just said it didn't matter," Zoe asked confused.

**"You just said it didn't matter."**

Everyone laughed as Zoe glared. No one noticed a samll frown on Hercules' face.

**"Blaa-ha-ha! There are satyrs who would trample you underhoof for such an insult!"**

**"Whoa. Wait. Satyrs. You mean like … Mr. Brunner's myths?"**

"Myths are stories," Thalia said before anyone could ask. Zeus stood up "HOW-" Hera glared at him "Sit down." Zeus sat down. Hades and Poseidon snickered.

**"Were those old ladies at the fruit stand a myth, Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds a myth?"**

**"So you admit there was a Mrs. Dodds!"**

"Why does that matter so much to him?" Ariadne asked and Dionysus answered. "I'm sure it was because for a mortal when everyone acts as if one thing happened and for that person it didn't happen, they think they're going crazy."

**"Of course."**

**"Then why-"**

**"The less you knew, the fewer monsters you'd attract," Grover said, like that should be perfectly obvious. "We put Mist over the humans' eyes. We hoped you'd think the Kindly One was a hallucination. But it was no good. You started to realize who you are."**

"Kindly One," ALecto mused "they mean me right?" Nico nodded.

**"Who I-wait a minute, what do you mean?"**

**The weird bellowing noise rose up again somewhere behind us, closer than before. Whatever was chasing us was still on our trail.**

Everyone was confused, what was it?

**"Percy," my mom said, "there's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you to safety."**

**"Safety from what? Who's after me?"**

"The Lord of the Dead," Nico replied. Thalia stared at him "Lord Hades is-"

"I know, but that is the truth." Thalia shrugged.

**"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, obviously still miffed about the donkey comment. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions."**

Nico smirked "See," Tisiphone frowned "We are not blood-thirsty," Megaera stared at the wall "We only follow orders."

**"Grover!"**

**"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"**

**I tried to wrap my mind around what was happening, but I couldn't do it. I knew this wasn't a dream. I had no imagination. I could never dream up something this weird.**

**My mom made a hard left. We swerved onto a narrower road, racing past darkened farmhouses and wooded hills and PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES signs on white picket fences.**

**"Where are we going?" I asked.**

**"The summer camp I told you about." My mother's voice was tight; she was trying for my sake not to be scared. "The place your father wanted to send you."**

**"The place you didn't want me to go."**

**"Please, dear," my mother begged. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You're in danger."**

**"Because some old ladies cut yarn."**

"It sounds stupid when you say it like that," Hercules rolled his eyes and Zoe glared. "But it's important."

**"Those weren't old ladies," Grover said. "Those were the Fates. Do you know what it means-the fact they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to … when someone's about to die."**

"Grover!" Thalia and Nico groaned.

**"Whoa. You said 'you.'"**

**"No I didn't. I said 'someone.'"**

**"You meant 'you.' As in me."**

**"I meant you, like 'someone.' Not you, you."**

"I don't get it," Apollo said blankly and Hermes nodded.

**"Boys!" my mom said.**

Artemis nodded "Yes boys, very annoying creatures." "HEY!" all the boys in the room objected.

**She pulled the wheel hard to the right, and I got a glimpse of a figure she'd swerved to avoid-a dark fluttering shape now lost behind us in the storm.**

**"What was that?" I asked.**

**"We're almost there," my mother said, ignoring my question. "Another mile. Please. Please. Please."**

"Please, please, please!" The chant was taken up by everyone in the room.

**I didn't know where there was, but I found myself leaning forward in the car, anticipating, wanting us to arrive. ****Outside, nothing but rain and darkness-the kind of empty countryside you get way out on the tip of Long Island. I thought about Mrs. Dodds and the moment when she'd changed into the thing with pointed teeth and leathery wings. My limbs went numb from delayed shock. She really hadn't been human. She'd meant to kill me.**

Alecto smiled "Late reaction."

**Then I thought about Mr. Brunner … and the sword he had thrown me. Before I could ask Grover about that, the hair rose on the back of my neck. There was a blinding flash, a jaw-rattling boom!, and our car exploded.**

Poseidon's eyes went wide with fear. He didn't know why but he felt closer to Percy than any of his other sons.

**I remember feeling weightless, like I was being crushed, fried, and hosed down all at the same time.**

**I peeled my forehead off the back of the driver's seat and said, "Ow."**

**"Percy!" my mom shouted.**

**"I'm okay… ."**

**I tried to shake off the daze. I wasn't dead. The car hadn't really exploded. We'd swerved into a ditch. Our driver's-side doors were wedged in the mud. The roof had cracked open like an eggshell and rain was pouring in.**

**Lightning.**

"ZEUS!" The yell was made by all the gods making the ground tremble and rocks fall from Mount Olympus down onto the cities. The poor mortals stared up at the sky, the gods were in a bad mood today.

That was the only explanation. We'd been blasted right off the road. Next to me in the backseat was a big motionless lump. "Grover!"

**He was slumped over, blood trickling from the side of his mouth. I shook his furry hip, thinking, No! Even if you are half barnyard animal, you're my best friend and I don't want you to die!**

"Very loyal," Hestia and Hermes said, "Pan will bless your soul."

**Then he groaned "Food," and I knew there was hope.**

Laughter was unable to be contained.

**"Percy," my mother said, "we have to …" Her voice faltered.**

**I looked back. In a flash of lightning, through the mud-spattered rear windshield, I saw a figure lumbering toward us on the shoulder of the road. The sight of it made my skin crawl. It was a dark silhouette of a huge guy, like a football player. He seemed to be holding a blanket over his head. His top half was bulky and fuzzy. His upraised hands made it look like he had horns.**

Theseus froze.

**I swallowed hard. "Who is-"**

**"Percy," my mother said, deadly serious. "Get out of the car."**

**My mother threw herself against the driver's-side door. It was jammed shut in the mud. I tried mine. Stuck too. I looked up desperately at the hole in the roof. It might've been an exit, but the edges were sizzling and smoking.**

**"Climb out the passenger's side!" my mother told me. "Percy-you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"**

**"What?"**

**Another flash of lightning, and through the smoking hole in the roof I saw the tree she meant: a huge, White House Christmas tree-sized pine at the crest of the nearest hill.**

"It's me!" Thalia exclaimed. Everyone looked at her weirdly, even Nico.

**"That's the property line," my mom said. "Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door."**

**"Mom, you're coming too."**

Thalia and Nico looked down sadly.

**Her face was pale, her eyes as sad as when she looked at the ocean.**

**"No!" I shouted. "You are coming with me. Help me carry Grover."**

**"Food!" Grover moaned, a little louder.**

**The man with the blanket on his head kept coming toward us, making his grunting, snorting noises. As he got closer, I realized he couldn't be holding a blanket over his head, because his hands-huge meaty hands-were swinging at his sides. There was no blanket. Meaning the bulky, fuzzy mass that was too big to be his head … was his head. And the points that looked like horns …**

Theseus' eyes were wide with fear and Ariadne gasped. They all looked at her but she shook her head making eye contact with Theseus. He gave her a subtle nod and she grew extremely rigid.

**"He doesn't want us," my mother told me. "He wants you. Besides, I can't cross the property line."**

**"But…"**

**"We don't have time, Percy. Go. Please."**

******I got mad, then-mad at my mother, at Grover the goat, at the thing with horns that was lumbering toward us slowly and deliberately like, like a bull.**

Theseus and Ariadne stared at each other in horror. Dionysus was glaring a little but no one noticed.

**I climbed across Grover and pushed the door open into the rain. "We're going together. Come on, Mom."**

**"I told you-"**

**"Mom! I am not leaving you. Help me with Grover."**

**I didn't wait for her answer. I scrambled outside, dragging Grover from the car. He was surprisingly light, but I couldn't have carried him very far if my mom hadn't come to my aid.**

**Together, we draped Grover's arms over our shoulders and started stumbling uphill through wet waist-high grass.**

******Glancing back, I got my first clear look at the monster. He was seven feet tall, easy, his arms and legs like something from the cover of Muscle Man magazine-bulging biceps and triceps and a bunch of other 'ceps, all stuffed like baseballs under vein-webbed skin. He wore no clothes except underwear-I mean, bright white Fruit of the Looms-which would've looked funny, except that the top half of his body was so scary. Coarse brown hair started at about his belly button and got thicker as it reached his shoulders.**

Aphrodite gagged.

**His neck was a mass of muscle and fur leading up to his enormous head, which had a snout as long as my arm, snotty nostrils with a gleaming brass ring, cruel black eyes, and horns-enormous black-and-white horns with points you just couldn't get from an electric sharpener.**

Everyone shook their heads, but were unable to laugh, _who was it?_

**I recognized the monster, all right. He had been in one of the first stories Mr. Brunner told us. But he couldn't be real.**

**I blinked the rain out of my eyes. "That's-"**

**"Pasiphae's son,"**

Everyone froze, the Minotaur that early?

** my mother said. "I wish I'd known how badly they want to kill you."**

**"But he's the Min-"**

**"Don't say his name," she warned. "Names have power."**

**The pine tree was still way too far-a hundred yards uphill at least.**

**I glanced behind me again.**

**The bull-man hunched over our car, looking in the windows-or not looking, exactly. More like snuffling, nuzzling. I wasn't sure why he bothered, since we were only about fifty feet away.**

**"Food?" Grover moaned.**

**"Shhh," I told him. "Mom, what's he doing? Doesn't he see us?"**

**"His sight and hearing are terrible," she said. "He goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."**

"She's right," Theseus said in worry. He was barely able to kill the Minotaur and he had years of training. How would Percy?

**As if on cue, the bull-man bellowed in rage. He picked up Gabe's Camaro by the torn roof, the chassis creaking and groaning. He raised the car over his head and threw it down the road. It slammed into the wet asphalt and skidded in a shower of sparks for about half a mile before coming to a stop. The gas tank exploded.**

Thalia and Nico laughed leaving everyone to wonder why.

**Not a scratch, I remembered Gabe saying.**

**Oops.**

And now they knew.

**"Percy," my mom said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way- directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"**

**"How do you know all this?"**

**"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me."**

**"Keeping me near you? But-"**

**Another bellow of rage, and the bull-man started tromping uphill.**

**He'd smelled us.**

Everyone was worried for Percy.

**The pine tree was only a few more yards, but the hill was getting steeper and slicker, and Grover wasn't getting any lighter.**

**The bull-man closed in. Another few seconds and he'd be on top of us.**

Poseidon paled slightly.

**My mother must've been exhausted, but she shouldered Grover. "Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said."**

**I didn't want to split up, but I had the feeling she was right-it was our only chance. I sprinted to the left, turned, and saw the creature bearing down on me. His black eyes glowed with hate. He reeked like rotten meat.**

Aphrodite was now green and she leaned on her husband's shoulder. Ares scowled deeply.

**He lowered his head and charged, those razor-sharp horns aimed straight at my chest.**

**The fear in my stomach made me want to bolt, but that wouldn't work. I could never outrun this thing. So I held my ground, and at the last moment, I jumped to the side.**

"Thank you!" Theseus exclaimed in relief.

**The bull-man stormed past like a freight train, then bellowed with frustration and turned, but not toward me this time, toward my mother, who was setting Grover down in the grass.**

"No,no,no,no, NO!" Thalia and Nico chanted.

**We'd reached the crest of the hill. Down the other side I could see a valley, just as my mother had said, and the lights of a farmhouse glowing yellow through the rain. But that was half a mile away. We'd never make it.**

**The bull-man grunted, pawing the ground. He kept eyeing my mother, who was now retreating slowly downhill, back toward the road, trying to lead the monster away from Grover.**

**"Run, Percy!" she told me. "I can't go any farther. Run!"**

**But I just stood there, frozen in fear, as the monster charged her. She tried to sidestep, as she'd told me to do, but the monster had learned his lesson. His hand shot out and grabbed her by the neck as she tried to get away. He lifted her as she struggled, kicking and pummeling the air.**

"NO!"

**"Mom!"**

**She caught my eyes, managed to choke out one last word: "Go!"**

**Then, with an angry roar, the monster closed his fists around my mother's neck, and she dissolved before my eyes, melting into light, a shimmering golden form, as if she were a holographic projection. A blinding flash, and she was simply … gone.**

Thalia and Nico looked at each other confused, Mrs. Blofis was-, then why?

**"No!"**

**Anger replaced my fear. Newfound strength burned in my limbs-the same rush of energy I'd gotten when Mrs. Dodds grew talons.**

"Go Percy!" Nico cheered.

**The bull-man bore down on Grover, who lay helpless in the grass. The monster hunched over, snuffling my best friend, as if he were about to lift Grover up and make him dissolve too.**

**I couldn't allow that.**

**I stripped off my red rain jacket.**

**"Hey!" I screamed, waving the jacket, running to one side of the monster. "Hey, stupid! Ground beef!"**

**"Raaaarrrrr!" The monster turned toward me, shaking his meaty fists.**

**I had an idea-a stupid idea,**

"Thank the gods," Thalia sighed. No one knew how to respond.

**but better than no idea at all. I put my back to the big pine tree and waved my red jacket in front of the bull-man, thinking I'd jump out of the way at the last moment.**

**But it didn't happen like that.**

"Of course not, it's Percy."

**The bull-man charged too fast, his arms out to grab me whichever way I tried to dodge.**

**Time slowed down.**

**My legs tensed. I couldn't jump sideways, so I leaped straight up, kicking off from the creature's head, using it as a springboard, turning in midair, and landing on his neck.**

Theseus was in shock, "how?"

**How did I do that? **

"You tell us."

**I didn't have time to figure it out. A millisecond later, the monster's head slammed into the tree and the impact nearly knocked my teeth out.**

"Ouch," Thalia said blankly.

**The bull-man staggered around, trying to shake me. I locked my arms around his horns to keep from being thrown. Thunder and lightning were still going strong. The rain was in my eyes. The smell of rotten meat burned my nostrils.**

**The monster shook himself around and bucked like a rodeo bull. He should have just backed up into the tree and smashed me flat, but I was starting to realize that this thing had only one gear: forward.**

**Meanwhile, Grover started groaning in the grass. I wanted to yell at him to shut up, but the way I was getting tossed around, if I opened my mouth I'd bite my own tongue off.**

**"Food!" Grover moaned.**

**The bull-man wheeled toward him, pawed the ground again, and got ready to charge. I thought about how he had squeezed the life out of my mother, made her disappear in a flash of light, and rage filled me like high-octane fuel. I got both hands around one horn and I pulled backward with all my might.**

Theseus shook his sadly "It won't happen."

**The monster tensed, gave a surprised grunt, then-snap!**

Orion smirked at Theseus who was mumbling "It happened."

**The bull-man screamed and flung me through the air. I landed flat on my back in the grass. My head smacked against a rock. When I sat up, my vision was blurry, but I had a horn in my hands, a ragged bone weapon the size of a knife.**

**The monster charged.**

**Without thinking, I rolled to one side and came up kneeling. As the monster barreled past, I drove the broken horn straight into his side, right up under his furry rib cage.**

**The bull-man roared in agony. He flailed, clawing at his chest, then began to disintegrate-not like my mother, in a flash of golden light, but like crumbling sand, blown away in chunks by the wind, the same way Mrs. Dodds had burst apart.**

**The monster was gone.**

"Shown up by my own brother," Theseus whispered as appluase started up in the throne room.

**The rain had stopped. The storm still rumbled, but only in the distance. I smelled like livestock and my knees were shaking. My head felt like it was splitting open. I was weak and scared and trembling with grief I'd just seen my mother vanish. I wanted to lie down and cry, but there was Grover, needing my help, so I managed to haul him up and stagger down into the valley, toward the lights of the farmhouse. I was crying, calling for my mother, but I held on to Grover-I wasn't going to let him go.** **The last thing I remember is collapsing on a wooden porch, looking up at a ceiling fan circling above me, moths flying around a yellow light, and the stern faces of a familiar-looking bearded man and a pretty girl, her blond hair curled like a princess's.**

Aphrodite smiled "Maybe it's one of my daughters."

**They both looked down at me, and the girl said, "He's the one. He must be."**

Nico smirked "The one?"

******"Silence, Annabeth," the man said. "He's still conscious. Bring him inside."**

Amphitrite gently shut the book "That was the end of the chapter." They all nodded. Hera stood up "Alright, we'll take a hour break, meet up for luch and then continue." They all nodded. Everyone stood up to go do their own thing.

**Dun, Dun, Dun the next chapter is up. Wow this was fast for me. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Please review, and in response. I'm not really sure I'm going to bring in Annabeth. Maybe in the fourth book. Anyways Percy comes back when? Time zone and book (chapter) please. I don't know what to do to have Percy come back. Ah well, I hope you liked it. Rather short of a chapter. Bye!**

**~Sakuya~**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter: Break Time! Ah no, enjoy this quick chapter I wrote since I was bored and super sorry about the wait.**

**Disclaimer: Me: Percy!**

**Percy: What? WHy am I here?**

**Me: Well, since you aren't in the story you can help me by doing the disclaimer**

**Percy: DO I get back faster**

**Me: Maybe**

**Percy: Fine, CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO, any of it's characters or the books we're reading, or the people from Greek Myhthology**

**Both: Enjoy the story**

_Amphitrite gently shut the book "That was the end of the chapter." They all nodded. Hera stood up "Alright, we'll take a hour break, meet up for lunch and then continue." They all nodded. Everyone stood up to go do their own thing._

"Alright!" Thalia said, then she fell back towards the ground. "What the heck are we supposed to do?" Hercules looked at her "Go with our godly pare-, oh right you can't tell who your parent is." Zoë stepped towards her "Thalia would thou like to go with the Hunters and Lady Artemis?" Thalia shrugged "Why not." Nico gasped "Thalia what am I supposed to do?" She shrugged "I dunno, go be a Nico," He looked at her "A Nico, really?" Thalia stared at him, "Yes a Nico, since I can't use your nicknames, and I had just thought of a great one too."

Nico glared at her "Fine Pi-," A swift kick in the shins stopped the insult. "Nico," a voice called "You may come with us," Hades told him. "D-Hades?" Nico asked baffled. "Alecto liked it that you knew who she was, so she pestered me to get you." Nico rolled his eyes "Of course, alright let's go."

* * *

**All have split up**

Thalia, Zoë, Artemis, Apollo and the rest of the Hunters

"Come on sis,"  
"Don't call me sis!"  
"But I'm older."  
"No, I am!"

Zoë sighed "Lady Artemis and Lord Apollo won't stop fighting about such matters. Always the same thing, who's older." Zoë looked at Thalia "You don't seem surprised." Thalia shrugged "Book 3." Zoë sighed realizing that was all she would get out of Thalia. "Phoebe," she called "how are the Hunters doing?" Phoebe looked at her seriously "They're fine. We could be better if Apollo didn't keep flirting with us, but," Zoë sighed. Thalia laughed "It's just Lord Apollo never changes, huh? Not now, not ever." Zoë paled realizing what Thalia meant. "Phoebe, could you give Thalia that pack? She'll need it soon enough." As if on cue they spotted a group of dracanae— Snake woman. The Hunters gave chase, and silver arrows flew. The dracanae burst into yellow dust. The Hunters smiled, they always had fun together. It was even better when someone new joined in. Apollo and Artemis had just stopped arguing by that time ad looked at the Hunters in disbelief. What in Hades had happened?

(At another spot of Olympus— Hades "Stop using my name in that manner!" we'll leave Hades alone for a bit)

Poseidon, Amphitrite, Triton, Orion, Theseus and Athena

"Remind me again, why _you're_ here Olive Seed?" Athena glared "I'm going to my temple and it's unfortunate I have to go by yours to get there!" Theseus frowned "Lady Athena, Dad, didn't Lady Aphrodite decide where to place all the temple?" The two rivals looked at each other "APHRODITE!"

(In the middle of checking her makeup— perfume overload? Aphrodite cringed at her name being shouted, then giggled to herself. "For the goddess of _wisdom_ Athena isn't very smart.")

Nico, Hades, Persephone, Demeter and the Furies (Megaera, Alecto and Tisiphone)

"You had to kidnap _my_ daughter,"  
"Mother!"  
"Demeter we have a demigod guest! Do you mind?"

The Furies and Nico watched the never ending banter between brother/sister, son-in law/mother-in-law and mother/daughter. "Somehow," Nico hissed to the Furies. He had been told that the Furies had figured out his true heritage. "This argument is much more amusing now then in the future." Demeter looked at Nico and gasped. "You're so scrawny and pale. Has his influence reached you already? Don't worry little boy. A lot of bread and working the field will have you better in no time!" Nico flinched away from her and shouted "Tisiphone!" The Kindly One rose up and stretched her wings. Tisiphone grabbed Nico in her claws and flew up into the air, melting into the shadows. Hades watched in awe. It was rare for any of them to want a demigod nearby, but to have _Tisiphone_ help the boy? Unbelievable. Who was the boy really?

Everyone else was in their temples tending to their duties. This leads to the end of their break, and Apollo and Hermes were the first ones to rush in for lunch. "FOOD!"

**Short break. Sorry I was to lazy to write anymore. Ah well. The long wait well last Saturday it was my birthday, then I just got busy last few weeks of school. Hope you liked this (super short) chapter! Don't forget to review and please tell me which time zone to bring Percy from, SoN or MoA. I put a poll on my profile for that so please vote!**

**~Sakuya~**


	7. Chapter 7

**Look, I'm not going to make any excuses about why it took me so long to upload. School's out in about two days so updates will be much faster. I'm actually running for my school's Character Council, so kind of nervous. Please wish me luck! Gave my speech today, and am waiting to find out, super nervous. Sorry if it affects my writing. Now enough of me, and on with the story!**

**(after the disclaimer)**

**Disclaimer: Me: I want someone fun to do it so who shall I bring up? Hmm... I know Orion!**

**Orion: What about me?**

**Me: Orion could you please do the disclaimer?**

**Orion: Can't Theseus do it, I mean he's the boring, technical, practical guy**

**Me: Really? Oh well, but I want you to do it so please?**

**Orion: Alright, CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO, Greek mythology, or the books we're reading**

**By the way is it possible to own Greek Mythology? I mean it's mythology**

**Me: I don't know Orion, hey! Let's go ask Theseus, he's smart right?**

**Orion: Yup! let's go**

**Both: Enjoy this mini chapter of people eating food! Bye!**

_This leads to the end of their break, and Apollo and Hermes were the first ones to rush in for lunch. "FOOD!"_

"Hermes! Apollo, what have you two been up to?" Hestia admonished softly. "Sorry Auntie Hestia," Hermes and Apollo looked sheepish "it's just that I was out with Artemis and the Hunters, and there were monsters and..." Hestia stopped Apollo. "And you Hermes?" Hermes looked up ready to defend himself and his hunger. It looked completely natural. Well as the god of thieves, he stole things. Of course he needed to be able to defend himself. "I was out delivering packages to the gods. I _am _the messenger of the George and Martha were pestering me about all the messages I have. Not to mention they wouldn't stop arguing with each other! I had to turn them into a papyrus scroll." Hestia laughed softly. "Alright you two, just wait as everyone comes in and we can start eating." The two gods cheered and rushed to their seats in the Dining Room of the Gods.

"Hey Hermes," Apollo hissed "These books just came in handy, otherwise we can only eat in this awesome place with incredible food choice on the solstice days!" Hermes nodded distractedly.

The Dining Room had low hanging tapestries made from silk, which praised the gods. Made by Athena herself. Of course there _were _a couple of Archane's too, but Athena hadn't noticed and Hades if they told her. Solid Imperial Gold torches, with Celestial Bronze torch holders held torches blazing with Ancient Greek fire. The deadliest fire around used to give off light. The ceiling was covered in stars, moons and suns creating a collage of night and day. There were olive branches weaved with a variety of flowers put into vases as a look of nature. The table itself was magical. It gave off a different style depending on what you wanted at the moment. A try of peasants? The wealthy? A similar look to what you have at home, or somewhere else? Anything you wanted. The chairs, they sat on mildly gave off the same feel as their thrones. Designed and created by Hephaestus, the chairs gave each Olympian the favor of their attributes.

The others filed in slowly and pretty soon the throne room was full. The demigods sat on the table as well, so the gods had the table shortened and sat at human size. The gods ate ambrosia and nectar and created some for the demigods to eat with out exploding into ashes. Thalia ordered a double cheese-burger instead, and everyone stared at her. Who passed up the chance to eat god food for regular mortal food?

Thalia noticed the odd stares and shrugged, "We're gonna be here for a while. Might as well eat this, don't wan to go overboard by eating god food everyday, then forget when we back and go poof." The gods nodded, she was right after all. Demigods must have short-term memory in the future. In all honesty, though? Thalia had just wanted to have some unhealthy food, since with the Hunt, Lady Artemis insisted they not have food like that in the wild. But it was a good excuse, being from the future came in handy. Thalia inwardly sighed _Too bad Percy isn't here. Could've beat him in eating cheeseburgers. Ah well.'_

Everyone finished their food and Nico grinned. "Blue birthday cake." Thalia smirked as it popped up recognizing where Nico was going with that. There was no Percy to have brought in any blue food. So they had to do it for him. "Blue birthday cake." Thalia ordered as well. The others were eating some ambrosia on a stick. "Um," Zoë looked at them critically, "what are thou eating?" The two shrugged "It's a tradition." Zoë looked at them in a mildly understanding way and moved on. As soon as everyone was finished they all walked out of the dining room and into the throne room.

**Eep! Their Dining Room is making me jealous. Anyways thank you to everyone who reviewed my story and voted on the poll. **

_**Goddessofcookies (Guest): Great suggestion, I'll be sure to do that if SON wins the poll. Really sorry about the late update!**_

_**Curlycorkscrewsrule12: Thanks for thinking that, and I agree cap-locks are pretty amazing**_

_**Avid Reader0907: I will most likely bring Percy back in this book. Can't have them read about Percy beating Ares, without Percy himself. The fight between Percy and Hercules. I'm building up the anger for it. You can tell, since Percy charged at him as soon as Percy saw Hercules. It'll be an epic battle. **_

_**DragonCrusader: Thanks for the review. I just want to say too many people are misunderstanding I think. I don't mean Percy to come back when those specific books are being read. Just their timezones. I assure you Percy will be back in this book only.**_

_**ObsessedWithPercyJackson: Thanks for the compliment. This story isn't really a reading of the children of the Big Three story, since I want to bring in Leo, Piper, Frank, Reyna and Octavian in the second series. Luke in this one. Jason will come in the next chapter, maybe. I might change my mind.**_

_**Guest: The House of Hades? Well I was planning on making Percy be taken out of Tartarus as soon as he reaches the bottom of the pit, after Percy and Annabeth just fall in.**_

_** Ma****riepc: Thank you so much! You favourite story? Really? I'm honored. **_

_**Shadow wolf fang: Thanks for the birthday wishes anyways and I hope you like this chapter too.**_

_**PJoHoOFan: Awesome? Epicness (actually not a word but who cares? not me)? Thanks a lot. **_

_**allen r: Thank you for voting in the poll. Sorry to disappoint you, but Annabeth's only going to come in the fourth book. I know Percabeth is a favourite thing in these stories but I really want to not have it. I mean I want this story to focus on Amphitrite, Triton, the past demigods, Hercules & Zoë feud, and more things in the upcoming chapters. Percabeth might just be too much, and I'm not sure if I can write the romantic stuff people want with Percabeth. Once again, I'm really sorry about that and I hope you will still continue to read and review for this story.**_

**Sorry if I missed anyone, but thank you as well. These people are just the recent reviewers and I picked the ones that I think needed answering or really wanted to thank for their reviews. Please vote in the poll if you want your timezone preference to be picked. I'm not going to count the votes in the reviews unless you are a guest. I will stop that too though, if I notice too many guest reviews for the timezone. I hope you like it, net chapter should be up today or tomorrow.**

**~Sakuya~**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello, I'm back with the next chapter. See? Told you updates would be faster. I've been looking at high schools I want to go to and have finally decided. Does anyone here know what you have to do to get into an IB (International ****Baccalaureate) school. Please let me know if you do. Also what are the entrance exams like? Any information about that will be very welcome.**

**Disclaimer: Me: Not in the mood to have anyone up here**

**Everyone: Yes!**

**Me: Huh?**

**Everyone: Scram!**

**Me: Alecto!**

**Alecto: Huh? Um, uh what?**

**Me: Please do the disclaimer**

**Alecto: You want me, a fury to do it?**

**Me: Yup!**

**Alecto: Ok! CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO, the books or any of it's characters!**

**Me: Thanks Alecto! Bye and everyone enjoy the chapter!**

_As soon as everyone was finished, they all walked out of the dining room and into the throne room_

Amphitrite picked up the book "So who wants to go next?" Zoë stood up. "I shall, Lady Amphitrite."

Zoë opened the book to chapter 5 and began reading... **I Play Pinochle With A Horse**

** I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me. The rest wanted food.**

"That is a weird dream, even for Percy." Nico stated. Thalia laughed "Grover!"

**I must've woken up several times, but what I heard and saw made no sense, so I just passed out again. I remember lying in a soft bed, being spoon-fed something that tasted like buttered popcorn, only it was pudding. The girl with curly blond hair hovered over me, smirking as she scraped drips off my chin with the spoon.**

Aphrodite smiled "I really hope it's one of my daughters."

The other gods looked at her and Amphitrite was a little suspicious. "Um, why?" Triton finally asked. Aphrodite giggled "Oh sweetie," Triton blushed "I want one of my daughters to be able to break the heart of a boy as nice as him." Poseidon glared at her "NO!' Aphrodite pouted "Just a..." "NO!"

Thalia and Nico smirked. _Oh Percy._

**When she saw my eyes open, she asked, "What will happen at the summer solstice?"**

Thalia looked like she was told Nico liked the colour pink and Green Day was no longer a punk band. Nico held in his laughter.

**I managed to croak, "What?"**

**She looked around, as if afraid someone would overhear. "What's going on? What was stolen? We've only got a few weeks!"**

**"I'm sorry," I mumbled, "I don't…"**

**Somebody knocked on the door, and the girl quickly filled my mouth with pudding. **

Artemis rolled her eyes. "_Boys."_

**The next time I woke up, the girl was gone. **

"Cute!" Aphrodite squeaked in a fan girl voice.

**A husky blond dude, like a surfer, stood in the corner of the bedroom keeping watch over me. He had blue eyes- at least a dozen of them-on his cheeks, his forehead, the backs of his hands. **

Hera smiled. It looked like Argus had found a good place to call home. His skills would come in handy.

**When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings, except that they were nicer than I was used to. I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. The breeze smelled like strawberries. There was a blanket over my legs, a pillow behind my neck. All that was great, but my mouth felt like a scorpion had been using it for a nest.**

Persephone looked perplexed, "How does he know?" She received shrugs in reply. The furies grinned and looked at Hades. He nodded, and Megaera spoke as she wrote. "Have scorpion make nest in prisoner's mouth." The others shuddered and Nico looked at the book. Percy helping the furies? Amazing.

** My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my teeth hurt. **

Hestia winced sympathetically.

**On the table next to me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice, with a green straw and a paper parasol stuck through a maraschino cherry.**

**My hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass once I got my fingers around it. **

**"Careful," a familiar voice said.**

**Grover was leaning against the porch railing, looking like he hadn't slept in a week. Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. He was wearing blue jeans, Converse hi-tops and a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. Just plain old Grover, Not the goat maybe I'd had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay. We were still on vacation, and we'd stopped here at this big house for some reason. And … **

Theseus looked at the book sadly "It's real alright."

**"You saved my life," Grover said. "I… well, the least I could do … I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this."**

**Reverently, he placed the shoe box in my lap.**

**Inside was a black-and-white bull's horn, the base jagged from being broken off, the tip splattered with dried blood. It hadn't been a nightmare.**

**"The Minotaur," I said.**

**"Urn, Percy, it isn't a good idea-" **

Athena frowned "Foolish boy, names have power!" Thalia looked at Athena "Lady Athena, he knows that and Percy doesn't care."

**"That's what they call him in the Greek myths, isn't it?" I demanded. "The Minotaur. Half man, half bull."**

**Grover shifted uncomfortably. "You've been out for two days. How much do you remember?"**

**"My mom. Is she really …"**

**He looked down. **

Even Artemis looked upset at the reminder. She was sorry for the boy. For now.

**I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky. The valley was surrounded by rolling hills, and the tallest one, directly in front of us, was the one with the huge pine tree on top. Even that looked beautiful in the sunlight. My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful. **

Theseus knew how Percy felt. He was the same when his father died, because he had forgotten to raise those stupid white flags.

**"I'm sorry," Grover sniffled. "I'm a failure. I'm-I'm the worst satyr in the world."**

**He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. The inside was filled with Styrofoam, except for a hoof-shaped hole.**

**"Oh, Styx!" he mumbled.**

**Thunder rolled across the clear sky.**

**As he struggled to get his hoof back in the fake foot, I thought, Well, that settles it.**

**Grover was a satyr. I was ready to bet that if I shaved his curly brown hair, I'd find tiny horns on his head.**

**But I was too miserable to care that satyrs existed, or even minotaurs. All that meant was my mom really had been squeezed into nothingness, dissolved into yellow light.**

Realization dawned on Persephone and she turned to her husband. He only shrugged, it _was _in the future.

**I was alone. An orphan. I would have to live with … Smelly Gabe? No. That would never happen. I would live on the streets first. I would pretend I was seventeen and join the army. I'd do something.**

**Grover was still sniffling. The poor kid-poor goat, satyr, whatever-looked as if he expected to be hit.**

**I said, "It wasn't your fault."**

**"Yes, it was. I was supposed to protect you."**

**"Did my mother ask you to protect me?"**

**"No. But that's my job. I'm a keeper. At least… I was."**

**"But why …" I suddenly felt dizzy, my vision swimming.**

**"Don't strain yourself," Grover said. "Here." He helped me hold my glass and put the straw to my lips.**

**I recoiled at the taste, **

Apollo looked as he was told all his cattle had died. "Why?! Nectar is one of the best things in the world!"

**because I was expecting apple juice.**

"Ah." Apollo nodded in understanding while Artemis rolled her eyes.

**It wasn't that at all. It was chocolate-chip cookies. Liquid cookies. And not just any cookies-my mom's homemade blue chocolate-chip cookies, buttery and hot, with the chips still melting. Drinking it, my whole body felt warm and good, full of energy. My grief didn't go away, but I felt as if my mom had just brushed her hand against my cheek, given me a cookie the way she used to when I was small, and told me everything was going to be okay. **

Amphitrite frowned. He acted like a nice boy, but...

**Before I knew it, I'd drained the glass. I stared into it, sure I'd just had a warm drink, but the ice cubes hadn't even melted.**

**"Was it good?" Grover asked.**

**I nodded.**

**"What did it taste like?" He sounded so wistful, I felt guilty.**

**"Sorry," I said. "I should've let you taste." **

"NO!" Hermes shouted "Satyrs are like mortals, when it comes to that. Descended from Pan, but not having a drop of godly blood." Hermes explained.

**His eyes got wide. "No! That's not what I meant. I just… wondered."**

**"Chocolate-chip cookies," I said. "My mom's. Homemade."**

**He sighed. "And how do you feel?"**

**"Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred yards."**

**"That's good," he said. "That's good. I don't think you could risk drinking any more of that stuff"**

**"What do you mean?"**

**He took the empty glass from me gingerly, as if it were dynamite, and set it back on the table. "Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting."**

**The porch wrapped all the way around the farmhouse.**

**My legs felt wobbly, trying to walk that far. Grover offered to carry the Minotaur horn, but I held on to it. I'd paid for that souvenir the hard way. I wasn't going to let it go. **

Theseus frowned, then shook his head. Now was not the time.

**As we came around the opposite end of the house, I caught my breath.**

**We must've been on the north shore of Long Island, because on this side of the house, the valley marched all the way up to the water, which glittered about a mile in the distance. Between here and there, I simply couldn't process everything I was seeing. The landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture-an open-air pavilion, an amphitheater, a circular arena-except that they all looked brand new, their white marble columns sparkling in the sun. In a nearby sandpit, a dozen high school-age kids and satyrs played volleyball. Canoes glided across a small lake. Kids in bright orange T-shirts like Grover's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods. Some shot targets at an archery range. Others rode horses down a wooded trail, and, unless I was hallucinating, some of their horses had wings. **

Thalia shook her head "Not hallucinating."

Nico frowned "Unfortunately." He caught the looks thrown his way. "Pegasus hate me." They nodded.

**Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. The blond-haired girl who'd spoon-fed me popcorn-flavored pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them.**

******The man facing me was small, but porky. He had a red nose, big watery eyes, and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He looked like those paintings of baby angels- what do you call them, hubbubs? No, cherubs. That's it. He looked like a cherub who'd turned middle-aged in a trailer park.**

"Who is that?" Dionysus asked and the futures laughed. "Percy!"

**He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, and he would've fit right in at one of Gabe's poker parties, except I got the feeling this guy could've out-gambled even my stepfather.**

Realization dawned on him. "Peter Johnson!" Ariadne put a hand on Dionysus' arm. "Please calm down, my lord."

**"That's Mr. D," Grover murmured to me. "He's the camp director. Be polite. The girl, that's Annabeth Chase. She's just a camper, but she's been here longer than just about anybody. And you already know Chiron… ."**

**He pointed at the guy whose back was to me.**

**First, I realized he was sitting in the wheelchair. Then I recognized the tweed jacket, the thinning brown hair, the scraggly beard.**

**"Mr. Brunner!" I cried.**

"Must've been nice, to have a familiar face teach you. " Perseus said. The futures smiled "It was, no is."

**The Latin teacher turned and smiled at me. His eyes had that mischievous glint they sometimes got in class when he pulled a pop quiz and made all the multiple choice answers B.**

**"Ah, good, Percy," he said. "Now we have four for pinochle."**

**He offered me a chair to the right of Mr. D, who looked at me with bloodshot eyes and heaved a great sigh. "Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now, don't expect me to be glad to see you."**

**"Uh, thanks." I scooted a little farther away from him because, if there was one thing I had learned from living with Gabe, it was how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice. If Mr. D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr. **

The comparison would be funny, if not the reason why it was said.

**"Annabeth?" Mr. Brunner called to the blond girl.**

**She came forward and Mr. Brunner introduced us. "This young lady nursed you back to health, Percy. Annabeth, my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk? We'll be putting him in cabin eleven for now."**

**Annabeth said, "Sure, Chiron."**

**She was probably my age, maybe a couple of inches taller, and a whole lot more athletic looking. With her deep tan and her curly blond hair, she was almost exactly what I thought a stereotypical California girl would look like, except her eyes ruined the image. They were startling gray, like storm clouds; pretty, but intimidating, too, as if she were analyzing the best way to take me down in a fight.**

**She glanced at the minotaur horn in my hands, then back at me. I imagined she was going to say, You killed a minotaur! or Wow, you're so awesome! or something like that.**

**Instead she said, "You drool when you sleep.  
**

Laughter echoed in the throne room.

**Then she sprinted off down the lawn, her blond hair flying behind her.**

**"So," I said, anxious to change the subject. "You, uh, work here, Mr. Brunner?"**

**"Not Mr. Brunner," the ex-Mr. Brunner said. "I'm afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."**

**"Okay." Totally confused, I looked at the director. "And Mr. D … does that stand for something?"**

**Mr. D stopped shuffling the cards. He looked at me like I'd just belched loudly. "Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason."**

**"Oh. Right. Sorry."**

**"I must say, Percy," Chiron-Brunner broke in, "I'm glad to see you alive. It's been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper. I'd hate to think I've wasted my time." **

"You really know how to make someone feel important, now don't you Chiron?" Ariadne shook her lightly. The centaur somewhat reminded her her old teacher Daedalus.

**"House call?"**

**"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you. We have satyrs at most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced the other Latin teacher to … ah, take a leave of absence."**

**I tried to remember the beginning of the school year. It seemed like so long ago, but I did have a fuzzy memory of there being another Latin teacher my first week at Yancy. Then, without explanation, he had disappeared and Mr. Brunner had taken the class.**

**"You came to Yancy just to teach me?" I asked. **

**Chiron nodded. "Honestly, I wasn't sure about you at first. We contacted your mother, let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that's always the first test."**

**"Grover," Mr. D said impatiently, "are you playing or not?"**

**"Yes, sir!" Grover trembled as he took the fourth chair, though I didn't know why he should be so afraid of a pudgy little man in a tiger-print Hawaiian shirt. **

Dionysus glared at the book.

**"You do know how to play pinochle?" Mr. D eyed me suspiciously.**

**"I'm afraid not," I said.**

**"I'm afraid not, sir," he said.**

**"Sir," I repeated. I was liking the camp director less and less.**

"It's alright. No one blames you." Apollo said soothingly to the book. Odd stares were directed his way but Apollo waved them off.

**"Well," he told me, "it is, along with gladiator fighting and Pac-Man, one of the greatest games ever invented by humans. I would expect all civilized young men to know the rules."**

**"I'm sure the boy can learn," Chiron said.**

**"Please," I said, "what is this place? What am I doing here? Mr. Brun-Chiron-why would you go to Yancy Academy just to teach me?"**

**Mr. D snorted. "I asked the same question."**

**The camp director dealt the cards. Grover flinched every time one landed in his pile.**

**Chiron smiled at me sympathetically, the way he used to in Latin class, as if to let me know that no matter what my average was, I was his star student. He expected me to have the right answer.**

**"Percy," he said. "Did your mother tell you nothing?'**

**"She said …" I remembered her sad eyes, looking out over the sea. "She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably couldn't leave. She wanted to keep me close to her."**

**"Typical," Mr. D said. "That's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?" **

Many people started glaring at Dionysus, even Triton.

**"What?" I asked.**

**He explained, impatiently, how you bid in pinochle, and so I did.**

**"I'm afraid there's too much to tell," Chiron said. "I'm afraid our usual orientation film won't be sufficient."**

**"Orientation film?" I asked. **

Nico stared at the book "Percy didn't watch it." Thalia looked exactly the same "He had no idea he was part of... OH..." Now the two felt guilty, because they had been criticizing Percy about things that weren't his fault.

**"No," Chiron decided. "Well, Percy. You know your friend Grover is a satyr. You know"-he pointed to the horn in the shoe box-"that you have killed the Minotaur. No small feat, either, lad. What you may not know is that great powers are at work in your life. Gods-the forces you call the Greek gods-are very much alive."**

**I stared at the others around the table.**

**I waited for somebody to yell, Not! But all I got was Mr. D yelling, "Oh, a royal marriage. Trick! Trick!" He cackled as he tallied up his points.**

**"Mr. D," Grover asked timidly, "if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?"**

**"Eh? Oh, all right." **

"WAIT!" Hermes cried, "why is the satyr listening to you." The futures shrugged "We don't know." when they saw stares coming their way.

**Grover bit a huge shard out of the empty aluminum can and chewed it mournfully.**

**"Wait," I told Chiron. "You're telling me there's such a thing as God."**

**"Well, now," Chiron said. "God-capital G, God. That's a different matter altogether. We shan't deal with the metaphysical."**

**"Metaphysical? But you were just talking about-"**

**"Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus. That's a smaller matter." **

"SMALLER!" The gods bellowed in anger.

**"Smaller?"**

**"Yes, quite. The gods we discussed in Latin class."**

**"Zeus," I said. "Hera. Apollo. You mean them." **

Zeus smirked "He says me, but not his own father."

**And there it was again-distant thunder on a cloudless day.**

**"Young man," said Mr. D, "I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you."**

**"But they're stories," I said. "They're-myths, to explain lightning and the seasons and stuff. They're what people believed before there was science." **

Everyone stared at the book "No, "their" not."

**"Science!" Mr. D scoffed. "And tell me, Perseus Jackson"-I flinched when he said my real name, which I never told anybody-"what will people think of your 'science' two thousand years from now?" Mr. D continued. "Hmm? They will call it primitive mumbo jumbo. That's what. Oh, I love mortals-they have absolutely no sense of perspective. They think they've come so-o-o far. And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me. **

**"****I wasn't liking Mr. D much, but there was something about the way he called me mortal, as if… he wasn't**

"Now you're getting it."

**It was enough to put a lump in my throat, to suggest why Grover was dutifully minding his cards, chewing his soda can, and keeping his mouth shut.**

**"Percy," Chiron said, "you may choose to believe or not, but the fact is that immortal means immortal. Can you imagine that for a moment, never dying? Never fading? Existing, just as you are, for all time?"**

**I was about to answer, off the top of my head, that it sounded like a pretty good deal, but the tone of Chiron's voice made me hesitate. **

Thalia and Nico's eyes widened at the news.

**"You mean, whether people believed in you or not," I said.**

**"Exactly," Chiron agreed. "If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning? What if I told you, Perseus Jackson, that someday people would call you a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?" **

Glares were shot at Dionysus and Ariadne looked disappointed. Dionysus gulped.

**My heart pounded. He was trying to make me angry for some reason, but I wasn't going to let him. I said, "I wouldn't like it. But I don't believe in gods."**

**"Oh, you'd better," Mr. D murmured. "Before one of them incinerates you."**

**Grover said, "P-please, sir. He's just lost his mother. He's in shock."**

**"A lucky thing, too," Mr. D grumbled, playing a card. "Bad enough I'm confined to this miserable job, working with boys who don't even believe.'"**

**He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table, as if the sunlight had bent, momentarily, and woven the air into glass. The goblet filled itself with red wine. **

Everyone rolled their eyes. '_Dionysus and his wine.' _

**My jaw dropped, but Chiron hardly looked up. **

Laughter echoed.

**"Mr. D," he warned, "your restrictions."**

"Restrictions?" Hestia asked. Thalia nodded "Mr. D isn't allowed to drink wine." Hestia stared at Zeus. "Alright!" Zeus grumbled "he can have it occasionally when this happens in the future."

**Mr. D looked at the wine and feigned surprise.**

**"Dear me." He looked at the sky and yelled, "Old habits! Sorry!"**

**More thunder.**

**Mr. D waved his hand again, and the wineglass changed into a fresh can of Diet Coke. He sighed unhappily, popped the top of the soda, and went back to his card game.**

**Chiron winked at me. "Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits."**

**"A wood nymph," I repeated, still staring at the Diet Coke can like it was from outer space.**

**"Yes," Mr. D confessed. "Father loves to punish me. The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid ten years! The second time-well, she really was pretty, and I couldn't stay away-the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. 'Be a better influence,' he told me. 'Work with youths rather than tearing them down.' Ha.' Absolutely unfair."**

**Mr. D sounded about six years old, like a pouting little kid.**

**"And …" I stammered, "your father is …"**

**"Di immortales, Chiron," Mr. D said. "I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course."**

**I ran through D names from Greek mythology. Wine. The skin of a tiger. The satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way Grover cringed, as if Mr. D were his master. **

"Why do the satyrs follow you in the future?!" Hermes asked annoyed.

**"You're Dionysus," I said. "The god of wine."**

**Mr. D rolled his eyes. "What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?"**

**"Y-yes, Mr. D."**

**"Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"**

**"You're a god."**

**"Yes, child."**

**"A god. You." **

"Don't worry, it was surprising for us too." Apollo reassured the book. Dionysus glared.

**He turned to look at me straight on, and I saw a kind of purplish fire in his eyes, a hint that this whiny, plump little man was only showing me the tiniest bit of his true nature. I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane with battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. I knew that if I pushed him, Mr. D would show me worse things. He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a strait-jacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.**

**"Would you like to test me, child?" he said quietly.**

**"No. No, sir."**

**The fire died a little. He turned back to his card game. "I believe I win."**

******"Not quite, Mr. D," Chiron said. He set down a straight, tallied the points, and said, "The game goes to me."**

The past demigods were surprised. Who knew Chiron was good at things like this, and better than Mr. D too.

**I thought Mr. D was going to vaporize Chiron right out of his wheelchair, but he just sighed through his nose, as if he were used to being beaten by the Latin teacher. He got up, and Grover rose, too.**

**"I'm tired," Mr. D said. "I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk, again, about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment."**

**Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir." **

"You hurt him and..." Hermes left the threat hanging.

**Mr. D turned to me. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners."**

**He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably.**

**"Will Grover be okay?" I asked Chiron.**

**Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit troubled. "Old Dionysus isn't really mad. He just hates his job. He's been … ah, grounded, I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed to go back to Olympus."**

**"Mount Olympus," I said. "You're telling me there really is a palace there?"**

**"Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there's the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. It's still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do."**

**"You mean the Greek gods are here? Like … in America?"**

**"Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West." **

Athena looked at the book with close attention.

**"The what?"**

**"Come now, Percy. What you call 'Western civilization.' Do you think it's just an abstract concept? No, it's a living force. A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years. The gods are part of it. You might even say they are the source of it, or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilization were obliterated. The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know-or as I hope you know, since you passed my course-the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps-Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on-but the same forces, the same gods."**

**"And then they died." **

**"Died? No. Did the West die? The gods simply moved, to Germany, to France, to Spain, for a while. Wherever the flame was brightest, the gods were there. They spent several centuries in England. All you need to do is look at the architecture. People do not forget the gods. Every place they've ruled, for the last three thousand years, you can see them in paintings, in statues, on the most important buildings. And yes, Percy, of course they are now in your United States. Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center, the Greek facades of your government buildings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the Olympians are not prominently displayed in multiple places. Like it or not-and believe me, plenty of people weren't very fond of Rome, either-America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West. And so Olympus is here. And we are here."**

**It was all too much, especially the fact that I seemed to be included in Chiron's we, as if I were part of some club.**

**"Who are you, Chiron? Who … who am I?" **

"He would be good for the theater." Nico muttered.

**Chiron smiled. He shifted his weight as if he were going to get up out of his wheelchair, but I knew that was impossible. He was paralyzed from the waist down.**

**"Who are you?" he mused. "Well, that's the question we all want answered, isn't it? But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. Besides, there will be s'mores at the campfire tonight, and I simply adore chocolate."**

**And then he did rise from his wheelchair. But there was something odd about the way he did it. His blanket fell away from his legs, but the legs didn't move. His waist kept getting longer, rising above his belt. At first, I thought he was wearing very long, white velvet underwear, **

Everyone tried to suppress laughter in respect for the old centaur, but couldn't help cracking a smile.

**but as he kept rising out of the chair, taller than any man, I realized that the velvet underwear wasn't underwear; it was the front of an animal, muscle and sinew under coarse white fur. And the wheelchair wasn't a chair. It was some kind of container, an enormous box on wheels, and it must've been magic, because there's no way it could've held all of him. A leg came out, long and knobby-kneed, with a huge polished hoof. Then another front leg, then hindquarters, and then the box was empty, nothing but a metal shell with a couple of fake human legs attached. **

This time they could help it. Everyone excluding the Furies and Amphitrite burst out laughing.

**I stared at the horse who had just sprung from the wheelchair: a huge white stallion. But where its neck should be was the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horse's trunk.**

**"What a relief," the centaur said. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let's meet the other campers."**

"That is the end of the chapter." Zoë announced. "Who shall read next?" Hephaestus got up. "I shall." He was about to begin reading when a golden glow lit up the throne room. When it subsided a teenage boy stood in the middle.

**Done! Who should the boy be? Jason or Luke? You decide. **

**Teenbooks4eva: Thanks for both things. I lost the election sadly but it was nice to know you supported me.**

**DragonCrusader: Once again thanks for the advice.**

**Shadow wolf fang: If this chapter didn't answer your question then, yes Dionysus does. I'm assuming with the toga and Ancient Greece still existing he has more of an adult like look. Not a "Baby Angel" look.**

**allen r: Really sorry to hear erm read that. Well thank you for reading this story up till now.**

**PJoHoOFan: Your wish is my command. Next chapter here you go**

**CrimsontheBloodyDemonKing: Really? I hadn't known about that. Well since I'm trying to make this story follow Greek Mythology as much as possible I'll be sure to put that in. It'll make a fun chapter seeing Demeter get super mad about that. Thanks for the info!**

**Thank you for the continuing votes on the poll and more will be appreciated. Please continue to review!**

**~Sakuya~**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello again. I'm sure you all are super mad at me. I am really sorry, actually I went on vacation to Florida for a week after two or three days after the summer holidays began. Then even though the chapter was written for quite some time, I wasn't able to write the author's note and just post it. Well, read on and I won't waste anymore time.**

**Disclaimer: I CelestialTitania swear on the Styx that I do not own PJO, HoO, Any of the characters or the books. Side note: Please let me know if you can own Greek Mythology. I'll put it in the disclaimer next time.**

Thalia pov

I stared at the boy, he had blond hair and blue eyes. Who was he? I couldn't see his face properly and the only thought that ran in my mind was _LOOK UP! Scar on no scar? Are you Luke? Before or after he turned evil? Who are you?_ Ok then thoughts actually. No stop getting off track!

The boy looked at me but stayed bowed before the gods. "My Lord," he said "May I ask why you have summoned me here?" The gods stared at him "Rise hero and tell us your name." The boy straightened " I am….."

**Cliffhanger! Sorry if you're disappointed but I just couldn't decide who Luke or Jason? It's sad, yes but please don't hate me. More suspense, no? Ah well it really can't be helped. Well see you later, but WARNING, do not leave this page without going to the bottom. And if you do oh well. Really, but either way I'm not gonna say just a small message for you guys. You can read it if you like, actually I hope you read it, but either way (shrugs).**

…

…

…

…

…

**Oh all right, if you insist I'll make a choice and just saying for those of you who wanted the other person, they'll come in soon. Ok? So don't get mad at me!**

The boy straightened "I am…" Nico stood up "No tittles," the boy looked at Nico confused. "The Fates." The boy nodded. "My name is Jason Grace."

I gasped I couldn't help myself, my little brother was alive? How?! A note fluttered down towards me and I started reading out loud.

_Dear Demigods of both times, Gods and Jason,_

_Look we apologize for the rather inconvenience. To warn you from now on people will be popping in and out. Yes, even if they are dead in your time Thalia and Nico. Jason please do NOT say your godly parent in any circumstances. In case you were wondering yes, this entire scenario is crazy. Just ignore it. And do us a favor? Sit next to Hercules. _

_Thalia don't read this part out loud. Hera hid your brother away as he is dangerous. One of the many reasons heritages will not be disclosed before time. Don't worry he knows you are his sister and why you weren't with him. You encounter each other in the future. Heads up for you, your future self is going to trade places with you soon._

_Sincerely the Fates, (Morai) the Awesome Apollo and Incredible Hermes_

I looked at the note in understanding and it disappeared into gold dust. "Then shall we read?" Orion asked. I nodded. Hephaestus took the book and began reading…

**I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom**

**Once I got over the fact that my Latin teacher was a horse, we had a nice tour, though I was careful not to walk behind him. I'd done pooper-scooper patrol in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a few times, and, I'm sorry, I did not trust Chiron's back end the way I trusted his front.**

**The past demigods (not including Zoë) gapped at the description of their teacher while the Olympians and futures laughed. "Chiron, would hate to hear his favourite student thought that," Nico snickered. Hercules glared ****_he_**** was Chiron's favourite, that brat didn't deserve to take his place.**

**We passed the volleyball pit. Several of the campers nudged each other. One pointed to the minotaur horn I was carrying. Another said, "That's him."**

**Jason rose a brow "So even then he was popular?" Thalia nodded "He was interesting." Jason too glared he was annoyed that his sister even now liked Percy over her own brother. Plus he was still a little upset that she was looking harder for Percy than she did for him.**

**Most of the campers were older than me. Their satyr friends were bigger than Grover, all of them trotting around in orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirts, with nothing else to cover their bare shaggy hindquarters. I wasn't normally shy, but the way they stared at me made me uncomfortable. I felt like they were expecting me to do a flip or something.**

**Orion looked at the book with a grin "Does he? Or can he?" Nico stared at Orion weirdly "Um, I don't know. I never asked."**

**I looked back at the farmhouse. It was a lot bigger than I'd realized-four stories tall, sky blue with white trim, like an upscale seaside resort. I was checking out the brass eagle weather vane on top when something caught my eye, a shadow in the uppermost window of the attic gable. Something had moved the curtain, just for a second, and I got the distinct impression I was being watched. **

**Athena frowned "What would be watching him?"**

**"What's up there?" I asked Chiron.**

**He looked where I was pointing, and his smile faded. "Just the attic."**

**"Somebody lives there?"**

**"No," he said with finality. "Not a single living thing."**

**Thalia and Nico nodded. Technically it wasn't living.**

**I got the feeling he was being truthful. But I was also sure something had moved that curtain.**

**"Come along, Percy," Chiron said, his lighthearted tone now a little forced. "Lots to see."**

"Really good at changing topics, now isn't he?" Jason questioned remembering how Chiron had asked him for lemonade after telling him he should be dead.

**We walked through the strawberry fields, where campers were picking bushels of berries while a satyr played a tune on a reed pipe.**

**Chiron told me the camp grew a nice crop for export to New York restaurants and Mount Olympus. "It pays our expenses," he explained. "And the strawberries take almost no effort."**

**He said Mr. D had this effect on fruit-bearing plants: they just went crazy when he was around. It worked best with wine grapes, but Mr. D was restricted from growing those, so they grew strawberries instead.**

More glares thrown at Zeus.

**I watched the satyr playing his pipe. His music was causing lines of bugs to leave the strawberry patch in every direction, like refugees fleeing a fire. I wondered if Grover could work that kind of magic with music.**

**Thalia burst out laughing. "Maybe now but back then?"**

**I wondered if he was still inside the farmhouse, getting chewed out by Mr. D.**

**"Grover won't get in too much trouble, will he?" I asked Chiron. "I mean … he was a good protector. Really."**

Nico and Thalia nodded in support. "A little crazy, but good protector." Nico agreed. Jason stared at the two, why did they agree so much? Because of Percy? His eyes narrowed probably.

**Chiron sighed. He shed his tweed jacket and draped it over his horses back like a saddle. "Grover has big dreams, Percy. Perhaps bigger than are reasonable. To reach his goal, he must first demonstrate great courage by succeeding as a keeper, finding a new camper and bringing him safely to Half-Blood Hill."**

**"But he did that!"**

**"I might agree with you," Chiron said. "But it is not my place to judge. Dionysus and the Council of Cloven Elders must decide. I'm afraid they might not see this assignment as a success. After all, Grover lost you in New York. Then there's the unfortunate … ah … fate of your mother. And the fact that Grover was unconscious when you dragged him over the property line. The council might question whether this shows any courage on Grover's part."**

"Nice morale booster, Chiron." Perseus commented.

**I wanted to protest. None of what happened was Grover's fault. I also felt really, really guilty. If I hadn't given Grover the slip at the bus station, he might not have gotten in trouble.**

**"He'll get a second chance, won't he?"**

Thalia winced.

**Chiron winced. "I'm afraid that was Grover's second chance, Percy. The council was not anxious to give him another, either, after what happened the first time, five years ago. Olympus knows, I advised him to wait longer before trying again. He's still so small for his age… ."**

**"How old is he?"**

**"Oh, twenty-eight."**

Jason stared at the book "_Young_?" Hermes explained "Satyrs grows slower than humans, because they live longer." Orion gawked "That is a nightmare, probably." Jason turned "It is I think." Nico sighed "I am sure it is, wow, none of us three of the future have actually had a real proper school life." Thalia nodded. Athena and Theseus looked as if their worst nightmare had come true. Of course everyone else was snickering.

**"What! And he's in sixth grade?"**

**"Satyrs mature half as fast as humans, Percy. Grover has been the equivalent of a middle school student for the past six years."**

**"That's horrible."**

Thalia laughed "Looks like Percy agrees with us." "Or we agree with him." Nico pondered. "Both!" Orion said. Jason was a little annoyed.

**"Quite," Chiron agreed. "At any rate, Grover is a late bloomer, even by satyr standards, and not yet very accomplished at woodland magic. Alas, he was anxious to pursue his dream. Perhaps now he will find some other career… ."**

**"That's not fair," I said. "What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?"**

**Chiron looked away quickly. "Let's move along, shall we?"**

Hermes looked at the book pained "Chiron!"

**But I wasn't quite ready to let the subject drop. Something had occurred to me when Chiron talked about my mother's fate, as if he were intentionally avoiding the word death. The beginnings of an idea-a tiny, hopeful fire-started forming in my mind.**

**"Chiron," I said. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real …"**

"Oh no," Persephone fretted "Why do I feel…?" Hades took her hand "I think so too, my dove. Lets see if he succeeds." Persephone hoped her husband didn't kill him.

**"Yes, child?"**

**"Does that mean the Underworld is real, too?"**

**"****Suspicion confirmed." Alecto stated. "Foolish boy," Megaera muttered.**

**Chiron's expression darkened.**

**"Yes, child." He paused, as if choosing his words carefully. "There is a place where spirits go after death. But for now … until we know more … I would urge you to put that out of your mind." "What do you mean, 'until we know more'?"**

**"What do you mean, 'until we know more'?"**

**"Come, Percy. Let's see the woods."**

Hermes sniffed in pretense "Chiron…" Fake tears replaced and a look with Apollo "We must teach you." Apollo smirked and the two high-fived.

**As we got closer, I realized how huge the forest was. It took up at least a quarter of the valley, with trees so tall and thick, you could imagine nobody had been in there since the Native Americans.**

**Chiron said, "The woods are stocked, if you care to try your luck, but go armed."**

**"Stocked with what?" I asked. "Armed with what?"**

**"You'll see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?"**

**"My own-?"**

"Well he wouldn't, but some godly parents give their children weapons beforehand." Athena informed them.

**"No," Chiron said. "I don't suppose you do. I think a size five will do. I'll visit the armory later."**

**I wanted to ask what kind of summer camp had an armory, **

**"****Our camp does, Percy."**

**but there was too much else to think about, so the tour continued. We saw the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables (which Chiron didn't seem to like very much), the javelin range, the sing-along amphitheater, and the arena where Chiron said they held sword and spear fights.**

**"Sword and spear fights?" I asked.**

**"Cabin challenges and all that," he explained. "Not lethal. Usually. Oh, yes, and there's the mess hall."**

**Chiron pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns on a hill overlooking the sea. There were a dozen stone picnic tables. No roof. No walls.**

**"What do you do when it rains?" I asked.**

**Chiron looked at me as if I'd gone a little weird. "We still have to eat, don't we?" I decided to drop the subject.**

"Why?" Ariadne questioned. "He's new to this world, it's a fair question. By the way, what _does _happen?"

Zoë answered "The borders are enchanted Lady Ariadne. Weather is only permitted by will." Thalia spoke up "Unless one of the gods make the weather happen, out of anger to the campers."

**Finally, he showed me the cabins. There were twelve of them, nestled in the woods by the lake. They were arranged in a U, with two at the base and five in a row on either side. And they were without doubt the most bizarre collection of buildings I'd ever seen.**

**The gods frowned. "Why?"**

**Except for the fact that each had a large brass number above the door (odds on the left side, evens on the right), they looked absolutely nothing alike. Number nine had smokestacks, like a tiny factory. **

**Hephaestus smiled as he read.**

**Number four had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass. **

**Demeter looked pleased and Persephone rolled her eyes.**

**Seven seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight it was almost impossible to look at. **

**Apollo grinned. "****_My_**** Cabin!" **

**They all faced a commons area about the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops (which were more my speed).**

Apollo grinned "Really Cuz? We have to play, as soon as I find out what basket-ball is." Thalia rolled her eyes "You shoot a ball through a hoop in the air." Apollo grinned "We must play."

**In the center of the field was a huge stone-lined firepit. Even though it was a warm afternoon, the hearth smoldered. A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick.**

**"****He saw me, the first time there." Hestia said in wonder. Then she smiled, it was nice to have someone notice her.**

**The pair of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two, looked like his-and-hers mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front. Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve. Its polished bronze doors shimmered like a hologram, so that from different angles lightning bolts seemed to streak across them.**

**No one noticed Thalia and Jason shudder. "Locked in a vault," Thalia muttered. Hercules and Perseus smiled at Zeus who looked proud.**

**Cabin two was more graceful somehow, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.**

**Hera smiled, her cabin sounded beautiful.**

**"Zeus and Hera?" I guessed.**

**"Correct," Chiron said.**

**"Their cabins look empty."**

Hera looked pleased, "Good."

**"Several of the cabins are. That's true. No one ever stays in one or two."**

**The gods frowned, Two was normal but why One?**

**Okay. So each cabin had a different god, like a mascot.**

**Theseus looked at the book "I guess you could say that."**

**Twelve cabins for the twelve Olympians. But why would some be empty?**

**I stopped in front of the first cabin on the left, cabin three.**

Triton and Amphitrite looked at Poseidon, "You were calling to him." Amphitrite said amazed, usually the demigods didn't notice.

**It wasn't high and mighty like cabin one, but long and low and solid. The outer walls were of rough gray stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been hewn straight from the bottom of the ocean floor. **

**Theseus and Orion grinned, their cabin sounded awesome!**

**I peeked inside the open doorway and Chiron said, "Oh, I wouldn't do that!" **

**Before he could pull me back, I caught the salty scent of the interior, like the wind on the shore at Montauk. The interior walls glowed like abalone. There were six empty bunk beds with silk sheets turned down. But there was no sign anyone had ever slept there. **

**"****What?! Why?" everyone was confused, Zeus ****_and _****Poseidon not having any kids? What happened? Amphitrite was a little pleased to hear that though, also worried.**

**The place felt so sad and lonely, I was glad when Chiron put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Come along, Percy."**

**Most of the other cabins were crowded with campers.**

**Number five was bright red-a real nasty paint job, as if the color had been splashed on with buckets and fists. The roof was lined with barbed wire. A stuffed wild boar's head hung over the doorway, and its eyes seemed to follow me.**

**Ares grinned, "Just my style."**

**Inside I could see a bunch of mean-looking kids, both girls and boys, arm wrestling and arguing with each other while rock music blared. The loudest was a girl maybe thirteen or fourteen. She wore a size XXXL CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirt under a camouflage jacket. She zeroed in on me and gave me an evil sneer. She reminded me of Nancy Bobofit, though the camper girl was much bigger and tougher looking, and her hair was long and stringy, and brown instead of red.**

**Ares stared at the book interested. One of his kids were mentioned? Lets see if this girl made him proud.**

**I kept walking, trying to stay clear of Chiron's hooves. "We haven't seen any other centaurs," I observed.**

**"No," said Chiron sadly. "My kinsmen are a wild and barbaric folk, I'm afraid. You might encounter them in the wilderness, or at major sporting events. But you won't see any here."**

Apollo, Hermes and Nico grinned "GO PARTY PONIES!" (Let's assume, the Party Ponies existed back then) Nico smiled "Percy agrees when he meets then in the future." Apollo and Hermes grinned "Again, Percy in an awesome Cuz."

**"You said your name was Chiron. Are you really …"**

**He smiled down at me. "The Chiron from the stories? Trainer of Hercules and all that? Yes, Percy, I am."**

**"But, shouldn't you be dead?"**

"No tack." Zoë rolled her eyes. Jason thought _Looks like Chiron isn't too different from Percy._

**Chiron paused, as if the question intrigued him. "I honestly don't know about should be. The truth is, I can't be dead. You see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. I could continue the work I loved. I could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. I gained much from that wish … and I gave up much. But I'm still here, so I can only assume I'm still needed."**

**I thought about being a teacher for three thousand years. It wouldn't have made my Top Ten Things to Wish For list.**

"Or ours." Everyone but Theseus and Athena said.

**"Doesn't it ever get boring?"**

**"No, no," he said. "Horribly depressing, at times, but never boring."**

**"Why depressing?"**

**Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again.**

**"Oh, look," he said. "Annabeth is waiting for us."**

Aphrodite looked at the book with new interest.

**The blond girl I'd met at the Big House was reading a book in front of the last cabin on the left, number eleven.**

**Hermes grinned widely.**

**When we reached her, she looked me over critically, like she was still thinking about how much I drooled.**

**I tried to see what she was reading, but I couldn't make out the title. I thought my dyslexia was acting up. Then I realized the title wasn't even English. The letters looked Greek to me. I mean, literally Greek.**

**They all rolled their eyes. "Bad pun Percy." Triton muttered. Poseidon looked at Triton, it looked as if he was warming up to Percy.**

**There were pictures of temples and statues and different kinds of columns, like those in an architecture book.**

**"Annabeth," Chiron said, "I have masters' archery class at noon. Would you take Percy from here?"**

**"Yes, sir."**

**"Cabin eleven," Chiron told me, gesturing toward the doorway. "Make yourself at home."**

**Out of all the cabins, eleven looked the most like a regular old summer camp cabin, with the emphasis on old.**

**"****Hey!" Hermes protested.**

**The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling. Over the doorway was one of those doctor's symbols, a winged pole with two snakes wrapped around it. What did they call it… ? **

**"****A caduceus." Hermes muttered. "George, Martha note to self, check up on the cabin from time to time. And you all." Hermes stared at the other gods "Claim your kids!" Aphrodite looked thoughtful, "They're at the campfire." She closed her eyes and muttered a word pink smoke went into the braziers and two kids were claimed. **

**A caduceus.**

**Inside, it was packed with people, both boys and girls, way more than the number of bunk beds. Sleeping bags were spread all over on the floor. It looked like a gym where the Red Cross had set up an evacuation center.**

Hermes glared "Again claim your kids!" Apollo and Ares did the same and yellow and red smoke rose into the braziers. A total of seven kids had been claimed in one day. Hermes sighed in relief and down at camp.

**A small sneak peak**

The Apollo cabin was starting up the campfire and they had all sat down with some grapes when a boy and girl form the Hermes cabin had doves above their heads and were beautified. Chiron was about to start when two girls and a boy had golden suns on their heads and two boys stood with twin swords bathed in red light. "All hail Flora and Oftar daughter and son of Aphrodite, Lady of the doves, goddess of love and beauty. Orchard, Anna, and Roven daughters and son of Apollo, Lord of the sun, prophecies, medicine, music and poetry. Landle and Kompo sons of Ares, Lord of war." Chiron wasn't sure what to make of this, was something about to happen? So many demigods claimed in one day. "Demigods please join your respective cabin after the campfire."

**Back to the Story**

**Chiron didn't go in. The door was too low for him. But when the campers saw him they all stood and bowed respectfully.**

**"Well, then," Chiron said. "Good luck, Percy. I'll see you at dinner."**

**He galloped away toward the archery range.**

**I stood in the doorway, looking at the kids. They weren't bowing anymore. They were staring at me, sizing me up. I knew this routine. I'd gone through it at enough schools.**

**"Well?" Annabeth prompted. "Go on."**

**So naturally I tripped coming in the door and made a total fool of myself.**

The futures and Hercules snickered, Thalia and Nico in a joking way, and Jason and Hercules in a meanish way. No one noticed though.

**There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.**

**Annabeth announced, "Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven.**

**"Regular or undetermined?" somebody asked.**

Hermes shot his fellow Olympians a glare.

**I didn't know what to say, but Annabeth said, "Undetermined."**

**Everybody groaned.**

**A guy who was a little older than the rest came forward. "Now, now, campers. That's what we're here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there."**

**The guy was about nineteen, and he looked pretty cool. He was tall and muscular, with short-cropped sandy hair and a friendly smile. He wore an orange tank top, cutoffs, sandals, and a leather necklace with five different-colored clay beads. The only thing unsettling about his appearance was a thick white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw, like an old knife slash.**

Thalia and Nico glared at the book.

**"This is Luke," Annabeth said, and her voice sounded different somehow. I glanced over and could've sworn she was blushing.**

**Thalia sighed "She probably was."**

**She saw me looking, and her expression hardened again. "He's your counselor for now."**

**"For now?" I asked.**

**"You're undetermined," Luke explained patiently. "They don't know what cabin to put you in, so you're here. Cabin eleven takes all newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers."**

**I looked at the tiny section of floor they'd given me. I had nothing to put there to mark it as my own, no luggage, no clothes, no sleeping bag. Just the Minotaur's horn. I thought about setting that down, but then I remembered that Hermes was also the god of thieves.**

"Aww…" Hermes groaned but stopped when Poseidon shot him a glare.

**I looked around at the campers' faces, some sullen and suspicious, some grinning stupidly, some eyeing me as if they were waiting for a chance to pick my pockets.**

**"How long will I be here?" I asked.**

**"Good question," Luke said. "Until you're determined."**

**"How long will that take?"**

**The campers all laughed.**

The gods looked guilty, and the demigods didn't look at them. "Is it really that bad?" Demeter asked and the demigods nodded glaring. _It was the cause of the war,_ Thalia and Nico thought.

**"Come on," Annabeth told me. "I'll show you the volleyball court."**

**"I've already seen it."**

**"Come on." She grabbed my wrist and dragged me outside. I could hear the kids of cabin eleven laughing behind me.**

**When we were a few feet away, Annabeth said, "Jackson, you have to do better than that."**

**"What?"**

**She rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath, "I can't believe I thought you were the one."**

"The One," Aphrodite smirked.

**"What's your problem?" I was getting angry now. "All I know is, I kill some bull guy-"**

**"Don't talk like that!" Annabeth told me. "You know how many kids at this camp wish they'd had your chance?"**

**"****Almost Zero, Annie." Thalia rolled her eyes.**

**"To get killed?"**

**"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"**

**"****To live?" Theseus muttered.**

**I shook my head. "Look, if the thing I fought really was the Minotaur, the same one in the stories …"**

**"Yes."**

**"Then there's only one."**

**"Yes."**

**"And he died, like, a gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So …"**

**Theseus smiled, his brother knew about his tale, when he apparently sucked at Greek mythology.**

**"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed. But they don't die."**

**"Oh, thanks. That clears it up."**

"A lot." Nico rolled his eyes. Tisiphone was slightly amused.

**"They don't have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you're lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them archetypes. Eventually, they re-form."**

**I thought about Mrs. Dodds. "You mean if I killed one, accidentally, with a sword-"**

Alecto frowned annoyed, the demigod brat got her.

**"The Fur … I mean, your math teacher. That's right. She's still out there. You just made her very, very mad."**

**Alecto nodded in agreement.**

**"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?"**

**"You talk in your sleep."**

**"You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades' torturers, right?"**

**"****Yes, we are." The furies smiled proudly.**

**Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up and swallow her. **

Hades rolled his eyes "That won't happen. One kid and these people." Nico looked sheepish. _Just one kid and a couple of skeletons. No biggie._ He thought.

**"You shouldn't call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all."**

**"Look, is there anything we can say without it thundering?" I sounded whiny, even to myself, **

Artemis and Zoë were surprised. A man admitting his fault? Well wonders never cease.

**but right then I didn't care. "Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everybody so crowded together? There are plenty of empty bunks right over there."**

**I pointed to the first few cabins, and Annabeth turned pale. "You don't just choose a cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or … your parent."**

**She stared at me, waiting for me to get it.**

**"My mom is Sally Jackson," I said. "She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to."**

Persephone, Nico and the Furies stared at Hades. Hades ignored their stares and Nico felt extremely lucky. Hades _still_ didn't realize.

**"I'm sorry about your mom, Percy. But that's not what I mean. I'm talking about your other parent. Your dad."**

**"He's dead. I never knew him."**

**Annabeth sighed. Clearly, she'd had this conversation before with other kids. "Your father's not dead, Percy."**

**"How can you say that? You know him?"**

**"No, of course not."**

**"Then how can you say-"**

**"Because I know you. You wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us."**

**"You don't know anything about me."**

**"No?" She raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."**

**"How-"**

**"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too."**

**I tried to swallow my embarrassment. "What does that have to do with anything?"**

Jason rolled his eyes, _Even if I don't like Percy too much, Annabeth's being a pain to him and super rude._

**"Taken together, it's almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek. And the ADHD-you're impulsive, can't sit still in the classroom. That's your battlefield reflexes. In a real fight, they'd keep you alive. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They don't want you seeing them for what they are."**

**"You sound like … you went through the same thing?"**

**"Most of the kids here did. If you weren't like us, you couldn't have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar."**

**"Ambrosia and nectar."**

**"The food and drink we were giving you to make you better. That stuff would've killed a normal kid. It would've turned your blood to fire and your bones to sand and you'd be dead. Face it. You're a half-blood."**

**A half-blood.**

**I was reeling with so many questions I didn't know where to start.**

**Then a husky voice yelled, "Well! A newbie!"**

**I looked over. The big girl from the ugly red cabin**

**Ares glared at the word ugly.**

**was sauntering toward us. She had three other girls behind her, all big and ugly and mean looking like her, all wearing camo jackets.**

**"Clarisse," **

**Ares rose a brow. Clarisse? Interesting name.**

**Annabeth sighed. "Why don't you go polish your spear or something?"**

**"Sure, Miss Princess," the big girl said. "So I can run you through with it Friday night."**

**Ares grinned, yeah she was alright.**

**"Erre es korakas!" Annabeth said, which I somehow understood was Greek for 'Go to the crows!' though I had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded. "You don't stand a chance."**

**Everyone looked at the book gravely "It is."**

**"We'll pulverize you," Clarisse said, but her eye twitched. Perhaps she wasn't sure she could follow through on the threat. She turned toward me. "Who's this little runt?"**

**"Percy Jackson," Annabeth said, "meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."**

**I blinked. "Like … the war god?"**

**Clarisse sneered. "You got a problem with that?"**

**"No," I said, recovering my wits. "It explains the bad smell."**

"You!" Ares snarled at the book and Jason rose a brow and leaned over to ask Thalia "Does he want to annoy the gods?" Thalia stared at her brother "Yup!"

**Clarisse growled. "We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy."**

**"Percy."**

**"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."**

**"Clarisse-" Annabeth tried to say.**

**"Stay out of it, wise girl."**

**Annabeth looked pained, but she did stay out of it, and I didn't really want her help. I was the new kid. I had to earn my own rep.**

**Jason looked at the book. ****_He's right, maybe he'll be able to survive the Roman camp after all._**

**I handed Annabeth my minotaur horn and got ready to fight, but before I knew it, Clarisse had me by the neck and was dragging me toward a cinder-block building that I knew immediately was the bathroom.**

**I was kicking and punching. I'd been in plenty of fights before, but this big girl Clarisse had hands like iron. She dragged me into the girls' bathroom. There was a line of toilets on one side and a line of shower stalls down the other. It smelled just like any public bathroom, and I was thinking-as much as I could think with Clarisse ripping my hair out-that if this place belonged to the gods, they should've been able to afford classier johns.**

**"****Really? That's what he was thinking?" Jason scoffed. "Way to go off topic Perce," Nico agreed. Hephaestus waited for quite a bit for everyone to stop laughing. **

**Clarisse's friends were all laughing, and I was trying to find the strength I'd used to fight the Minotaur, but it just wasn't there.**

**"Like he's 'Big Three' material," Clarisse said as she pushed me toward one of the toilets. "Yeah, right. Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he was so stupid looking."**

**Her friends snickered.**

**Annabeth stood in the corner, watching through her fingers.**

Persephone looked at the book disapproving "She could have at least said something to help the poor boy."

Hades, Nico and the Furies stared at her, and Nico looked horrified "_Oh please do not support Percy. It's freaky having my step-mom like my best friend/cousin/big brother._ Hades groaned _My dove, please do not care about another demigod. Orpheus was enough for the millennium._ The furies, well they were just surprised their Lady said it.

**Clarisse bent me over on my knees and started pushing my head toward the toilet bowl. It reeked like rusted pipes and, well, like what goes into toilets. I strained to keep my head up. I was looking at the scummy water, thinking, I will not go into that. I won't.**

**Then something happened. I felt a tug in the pit of my stomach.**

Ares glared while Poseidon, Triton, Theseus and Orion shared grins. Amphitrite rolled her eyes, _My husband and his children, all just love their water powers._

**I heard the plumbing rumble, the pipes shudder. Clarisse's grip on my hair loosened. Water shot out of the toilet, making an arc straight over my head, and the next thing I knew, I was sprawled on the bathroom tiles with Clarisse screaming behind me.**

"Clarisse, how are you not dead? Percy's water powers are deadly." Nico stated.

**I turned just as water blasted out of the toilet again, hitting Clarisse straight in the face so hard it pushed her down onto her butt. The water stayed on her like the spray from a fire hose, pushing her backward into a shower stall.**

**She struggled, gasping, and her friends started coming toward her. But then the other toilets exploded, too, and six more streams of toilet water blasted them back. The showers acted up, too, and together all the fixtures sprayed the camouflage girls right out of the bathroom, spinning them around like pieces of garbage being washed away.**

Ares glared while everyone especially Hephaestus howled in laughter.

**As soon as they were out the door, I felt the tug in my gut lessen, and the water shut off as quickly as it had started.**

**The entire bathroom was flooded. Annabeth hadn't been spared. She was dripping wet, but she hadn't been pushed out the door. She was standing in exactly the same place, staring at me in shock.**

**I looked down and realized I was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room. There was a circle of dry floor around me. I didn't have one drop of water on my clothes. Nothing.**

**I stood up, my legs shaky.**

**Annabeth said, "How did you …"**

**"I don't know."**

**We walked to the door. Outside, Clarisse and her friends were sprawled in the mud, and a bunch of other campers had gathered around to gawk. Clarisse's hair was flattened across her face. Her camouflage jacket was sopping and she smelled like sewage. She gave me a look of absolute hatred. "You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead."**

**I probably should have let it go, but I said, "You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth."**

Laughter echoed for a full ten minutes. "Percy, doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut, does he?" Nico shook his head " Holy Zeus, NO!" Jason felt a flicker of fear, sympathy and panic _Uh oh, Lady Juno if Percy says something wrong then your plan will fail. And Olympus might fall because the Romans won't trust the Greeks and vice-versa. Heck no place would trust another if they hurt their leader._

**Her friends had to hold her back. They dragged her toward cabin five, while the other campers made way to avoid her flailing feet.**

**Annabeth stared at me. I couldn't tell whether she was just grossed out or angry at me for dousing her.**

**"What?" I demanded. "What are you thinking?"**

**"I'm thinking," she said, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag."**

"The end of the chapter," Hephaestus announced when everyone stared at him to continue. "Very good," Hercules said and Jason agreed. He knew this was probably so he could know more about Percy as they were going to work together, but he was tired of hearing the guy's name. He smiled inwardly, maybe Percy was feeling the same way. The guy did seem kind of cool to be honest. Ah well, read on to find out.

Ariadne stepped forward "Lord Hephaestus, if I may?" Hephaestus handed her the book and Ariadne cleared her throat and started to read… **My Dinner Goes Up In Smoke**

**Ah, the satisfaction of finishing. Again really sorry for not posting the chapter, went on vacation so computer access… XXX… Hope you liked this chapter not much of a action filled one. Kind of slow too be honest. Anyways please continue to review. Really, I hadn't expected this story to have 83 reviews, 83 favourites and 126 followers in such a short time. Thanks a lot everyone. The next chapter will be up hopefully soon.**

**The Thank yous:**

**_CrimsontheBloodyDemonKing: Sorry about the chapter mix up. There was a technical difficulty. Thanks for letting me know._**

**_theaplphamale: Thanks, I'm glad you like it so far_**

**_Seithr-Kairy: Thanks to you too for letting me know about the chapter mix up. By the way I love your pen name._**

**_Xtine(guest) Thalia knows about Jason. He was the reason why she stayed with her mom remember._**

**_Saraarena: Sorry about the late update. From your review I could _****really ****_tell you wanted it._**

**_ranger10(guest): Yeah don't worry about that. I see Orion as more of a nice, happy, go lucky type of character. Plus this story kind of focuses on everyone's individual problems. Really? Cool, Chuck Norris is scared of you. Not so tough anymore, huh?_**

**_Arya54: Thanks a lot. It's always nice to hear my readers like my story._**

**And a ton of thank yous to everyone who voted for Jason or Luke, and the people who voted in the poll. Percy will be back next couple of chapters. Anyways see you soon.**

**~Sakuya~**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey! This update had been uploaded exactly 18 days, meaning 2 weeks and 4 days after the previous update. It would have been sooner if only my computer hadn't frozen up every time I started writing or deleted a lot of my work. Oh well. Here is the update and as they say better late than never!**

**Disclaimer: Me: What's the point of this? I mean the site is called FANFICTION**

**Orion and Apollo: Wha?! No way, it is?**

**Orion: Oh, who cares? This is so we can talk to the readers**

**Apollo: Yeah!**

**Me: Why do you want to talk?**

**Orion: Because we hardly get to speak**

**Me: Are you kidding?! You two speak the most! *sigh* Well, since you are here, how about doing the disclaimer?**

**Apollo: Fine, CelestialTitania doesn't own PJO**

**Orion: the characters, or the books that we read, or people from Greek mythology or the myths...**

**Me: They get it!**

**Apollo and Orion: (happily) OK! Enjoy the story!**

**Me: Yeah, have fun reading**

**All: Bye! See ya!**

* * *

_Ariadne stepped forward "Lord Hephaestus, if I may?" Hephaestus handed her the book and Ariadne cleared her throat and started to read…_**My Dinner Goes Up In Smoke... **

**Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever I went, campers pointed at me and murmured something about toilet water. Or maybe they were just staring at Annabeth, who was still pretty much dripping wet.**

Athena glared at the book. Why did her daughter get sprayed too?

**She showed me a few more places: the metal shop (where kids were forging their own swords), the arts-and-crafts room (where satyrs were sandblasting a giant marble statue of a goat-man), **

Hermes' mouth flew open in indignation "That's Pan! Not a "goat-man", though the description is accurate."

Apollo and the demigods stifled laughs.

**and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough. **

The past demigods were envious, if only they had training centers like that...

**Finally we returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins.**

**"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinner's at seven-thirty. Just follow your cabin to the mess hall."**

**"Annabeth, I'm sorry about the toilets."**

Artemis and Zoe stared at the book, since when did men admit their mistakes?

**"Whatever."**

**"It wasn't my fault."**

Now they rolled their eyes, _typical_.

**She looked at me skeptically, and I realized it was my fault. I'd made water shoot out of the bathroom fixtures. I didn't understand how. But the toilets had responded to me. I had become one with the plumbing. **

"One with the plumbing?" Apollo called out "Sounds fun, those pipe thingies bursting water right?" He received nods in response.

**"You need to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said.**

**"Who?"**

**"Not who. What. The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron." **

"Huh?" Jason asked and turned to Thalia who motioned that she'd explain later.

**I stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give me a straight answer for once.**

**I wasn't expecting anybody to be looking back at me from the bottom, so my heart skipped a beat when I noticed two teenage girls sitting cross-legged at the base of the pier, about twenty feet below. They wore blue jeans and shimmering green T-shirts, and their brown hair floated loose around their shoulders as minnows darted in and out. They smiled and waved as if I were a long-lost friend. **

"Well..." Poseidon began "I suppose he is."

**I didn't know what else to do. I waved back.**

**"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts." **

"EEK!" Aphrodite squealed "She's jealous!" Thalia grimaced.

**"Naiads," I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now." **

Jason stared at the book, "He fought a Fury," Alecto straightened "A Minotaur, seen so much of camp and his breaking point was seeing a nymph?!" Nico shrugged "Technically a Naiad." Jason rolled his eyes "You know what I mean." Thalia gave a small smile "It's Percy and well, there is a breaking point. I think he just registered everything that happened. Otherwise it was all a blur." Jason nodded praying, that he won't act as oblivious at the Roman Camp, _No _he remembered _there's Lupa first at the Wolf House, I hope._

**"Naiads," I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now." **

"Hey!" The future demigods yelled for different reasons. Thalia and Nico, well they don't want to be called "mentally disturbed" and Jason since it wasn't the "only" safe place.

**"I mean not human. Not totally human, anyway. Half-human."**

**"Half-human and half-what?"**

**"I think you know."**

**I didn't want to admit it, but I was afraid I did. I felt a tingling in my limbs, a sensation I sometimes felt when my mom talked about my dad.**

**"God," I said. "Half-god." **

The gods nodded with pride as the demigods rolled their eyes at the dramatics.

**Annabeth nodded. "Your father isn't dead, Percy. He's one of the Olympians."**

**"That's … crazy."**

**"Is it? What's the most common thing gods did in the old stories? They ran around falling in love with humans and having kids with them. Do you think they've changed their habits in the last few millennia?"**

**"But those are just-" I almost said myths again. Then I remembered Chiron's warning that in two thousand years, I might be considered a myth. "But if all the kids here are half-gods-"**

**"Demigods," Annabeth said. "That's the official term. Or half-bloods."**

**"Then who's your dad?"**

"The Idiot!" Thalia said.

**Her hands tightened around the pier railing. I got the feeling I'd just trespassed on a sensitive subject. **

"You think?" Thalia rolled her eyes.

**"My dad is a professor at West Point," she said. "I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history."**

**"He's human."**

**"What? You assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?"**

**"Who's your mom, then?"**

**"Cabin six."**

"How is he supposed to know what that means? He just got there! _I _still don't know what that means and I've been there for months!" Jason exclaimed. The others shrugged.

**"Meaning?"**

"No fair." Jason mumbled. "What is it?" Nico asked. "Well, Annabeth told me a Cabin number when I first arrived and I had the same reaction, it isn't original anymore." Nico rolled his eyes.

**Annabeth straightened. "Athena. Goddess of wisdom and battle."**

**Okay, I thought. Why not?**

"What does that mean?" Athena growled before realizing she was talking to a book and blushed. Hermes and Apollo laughed.

**"And my dad?"**

**"Undetermined," Annabeth said, "like I told you before. Nobody knows."**

**"Except my mother. She knew."**

**"Maybe not, Percy. Gods don't always reveal their identities."**

**"My dad would have. He loved her."**

**Annabeth gave me a cautious look like she didn't want to burst my bubble.**

**"Maybe you're right. Maybe he'll send a sign. That's the only way to know for sure: your father has to send you a sign claiming you as his son. Sometimes it happens.**

**"You mean sometimes it doesn't?"**

**Annabeth ran her palm along the rail. "The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids and they don't always … Well, sometimes they don't care about us, Percy. They ignore us." **

The gods looked at their children uncomfortably as they looked away from them.

**I thought about some of the kids I'd seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed, as if they were waiting for a call that would never come. I'd known kids like that at Yancy Academy, shuffled off to boarding school by rich parents who didn't have the time to deal with them. But gods should behave better. **

The gods looked ashamed (as they should) and Persephone's glare bothered Demeter so much she immediately muttered the necessary words. "All my children are claimed." She told them as straw-yellow smoke drifted into the braziers.

**"So I'm stuck here," I said. "That's it? For the rest of my life?"**

**"It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you're a child of Aphrodite or Demeter, you're probably not a real powerful force." **

Said goddesses glared at the book. How DARE she!

**The monsters might ignore you, so you can get by with a few months of summer training and live in the mortal world the rest of the year. But for some of us, it's too dangerous to leave. We're year-rounders. In the mortal world, we attract monsters. They sense us. They come to challenge us. Most of the time, they'll ignore us until we're old enough to cause trouble-about ten or eleven years old, but after that, most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed off. A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous. Believe me, if I told you the names, you'd know them. Some don't even realize they're demigods. But very, very few are like that."**

**"So monsters can't get in here?"**

**Annabeth shook her head. "Not unless they're intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by somebody on the inside."**

**"Why would anybody want to summon a monster?"**

**"Practice fights. Practical jokes."**

"Practical jokes?" Theseus asked horrified. "Why would anyone want to do that." The futures shrugged "They stopped before we went to camp."

**"Practical jokes?"**

Theseus smiled at saying the same thing as his brother.

**"The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm."**

**"So … you're a year-rounder?"**

**Annabeth nodded. From under the collar of her T-shirt she pulled a leather necklace with five clay beads of different colors. It was just like Luke's, except Annabeth's also had a big gold ring strung on it, like a college ring.**

**"I've been here since I was seven," she said. "Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I've been here longer than most of the counselors, and they're all in college."**

**"Why did you come so young?"**

**She twisted the ring on her necklace. "None of your business."**

Thalia sighed "He has no tack."

**"Oh." I stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence. "So … I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"**

**"It would be suicide, but you could, with Mr. D's or Chiron's permission. But they wouldn't give permission until the end of the summer session unless …"**

**"Unless?"**

**"You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens. The last time …"**

**Her voice trailed off. I could tell from her tone that the last time hadn't gone well.**

"What happened?" Once again the future had no idea "Before we came to camp." They called out collectively and shared grins.

**"Back in the sick room," I said, "when you were feeding me that stuff-"**

**"Ambrosia."**

Apollo drooled.

**"Yeah. You asked me something about the summer solstice."**

**Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "So you do know something?"**

**"Well… no. Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it. Grover mentioned the summer solstice. He said something like we didn't have much time, because of the deadline. What did that mean?"**

**She clenched her fists. "I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they won't tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so normal."**

**"You've been to Olympus?"**

**"Some of us year-rounders-Luke and Clarisse**

Jason's jaw dropped "They're lucky and it's unfair." Thalia and Nico shrugged. Nico muttered "I only went to Olympus once." Jason stared at him "At least you did, I didn't at all! Besides you spend all your time in the Underworld."

**"Some of us year-rounders-Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others-we took a field trip during winter solstice. That's when the gods have their big annual council."**

**"But… how did you get there?"**

**"The Long Island Railroad, of course. You get off at Penn Station. Empire State Building, special elevator to the six hundredth floor." She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already. "You are a New Yorker, right?"**

"Right, because tons of mortals live in New York, I bet. And they _all_ must know that Olympus ir right above the Empire State Building. It _must _be obvious." Orion drawled. Amphitrite spoke up "You know, for a daughter of Athena, she isn't very smart." Poseidon nodded in agreement. Athena glared, but Ariadne began reading before a fight started.

**"Oh, sure." As far as I knew, there were only a hundred and two floors in the Empire State Building, but I decided not to point that out.**

**"Right after we visited," Annabeth continued, "the weather got weird, as if the gods had started fighting. A couple of times since, I've overheard satyrs talking. The best I can figure out is that something important was stolen. And if it isn't returned by summer solstice, there's going to be trouble. When you came, I was hoping … I mean- Athena can get along with just about anybody, except for Ares. And of course she's got the rivalry with Poseidon. **

The two glared at each other.

** But, I mean, aside from that, I thought we could work together. I thought you might know something."**

"Yeah, because he had no idea of who he really was until five minutes ago. Real smart." Persephone muttered.

**I shook my head. I wished I could help her, but I felt too hungry and tired and mentally overloaded to ask any more questions.**

**"I've got to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to herself. "I'm not too young. If they would just tell me the problem …"**

**I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere nearby. Annabeth must've heard my stomach growl. She told me to go on, she'd catch me later. I left her on the pier, tracing her finger across the rail as if drawing a battle plan. **

Athena tried to be proud, but after all those things there needed to be some real wisdom shown.

**Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around, waiting for dinner. For the first time, I noticed that a lot of the campers had similar features: sharp noses, upturned eyebrows, mischievous smiles. They were the kind of kids that teachers would peg as troublemakers. Thankfully, nobody paid much attention to me as I walked over to my spot on the floor and plopped down with my minotaur horn.**

**The counselor, Luke, came over. He had the Hermes family resemblance, too. It was marred by that scar on his right cheek, but his smile was intact.**

**"Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store."**

**I couldn't tell if he was kidding about the stealing part. **

Hermes scoffed "he's my son, of course he wasn't."

**I said, "Thanks."**

**"No prob." Luke sat next to me, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?"**

**"I don't belong here," I said. "I don't even believe in gods."**

**"Yeah," he said. "That's how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It doesn't get any easier."**

**The bitterness in his voice surprised me, because Luke seemed like a pretty easy going guy. He looked like he could handle just about anything.**

Hermes gulped.

**"So your dad is Hermes?" I asked.**

**He pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, and for a second I thought he was going to gut me, but he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes."**

**"The wing-footed messenger guy."**

Hermes now groaned "Thanks for the apt description cuz."

**"That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors."**

**I figured Luke didn't mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind. **

Nico glared. "Of course he did." he muttered his voice bitter. Luke hurt someone he considered an older brother, he'd never forgive him for that and _this _was an eligible grudge.

**"You ever meet your dad?" I asked.**

**"Once."**

**I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he'd tell me. Apparently, he didn't. I wondered if the story had anything to do with how he got his scar.**

Hermes was horrified, "I'd n-n-never!" he sputtered.

**Luke looked up and managed a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, we're extended family, right? We take care of each other."**

"Right, as if." Thalia glared.

**He seemed to understand how lost I felt, and I was grateful for that, because an older guy like him-even if he was a counselor-should've steered clear of an uncool middle-schooler like me. But Luke had welcomed me into the cabin. He'd even stolen me some toiletries, which was the nicest thing anybody had done for me all day. **

"That's kind of sad really." Perseus said. Thalia and Nico looked horrified "Hey, we'd be super nice but we weren't at camp yet!"

**I decided to ask him my last big question, the one that had been bothering me all afternoon. "Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth … twice, she said I might be 'the one.' She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"**

**Luke folded his knife. "I hate prophecies."**

**"What do you mean?"**

**His face twitched around the scar. "Let's just say I messed things up for everybody else. The last two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides—**

Zoe perked up interested at the n=mention of her old family. After of course shooting a glare at Hercules.

**—went sour, Chiron hasn't allowed any more quests. Annabeth's been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her he already knew her fate. He'd had a prophecy from the Oracle. He wouldn't tell her the whole thing, but he said Annabeth wasn't destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until… somebody special came to the camp."**

**"Somebody special?" **

Another shriek from Aphrodite had everyone clutching their ears.

**"Don't worry about it, kid," Luke said. "Annabeth wants to think every new camper who comes through here is the omen she's been waiting for. Now, come on, it's dinnertime."**

**The moment he said it, a horn blew in the distance. Somehow, I knew it was a conch shell, even though I'd never heard one before.**

**Luke yelled, "Eleven, fall in!"**

**The whole cabin, about twenty of us, filed into the commons yard. We lined up in order of seniority, so of course I was dead last. Campers came from the other cabins, too, except for the three empty cabins at the end, and cabin eight, which had looked normal in the daytime, but was now starting to glow silver as the sun went down.**

**We marched up the hill to the mess hall pavilion. Satyrs joined us from the meadow. Naiads emerged from the canoeing lake. A few other girls came out of the woods- and when I say out of the woods, I mean straight out of the woods. I saw one girl, about nine or ten years old, melt from the side of a maple tree and come skipping up the hill.**

**In all, there were maybe a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads.**

"Huh? But there are-" Jason started before Thalia cut in "Fifth book."

**At the pavilion, torches blazed around the marble columns. A central fire burned in a bronze brazier the size of a bathtub. Each cabin had its own table, covered in white cloth trimmed in purple. Four of the tables were empty, but cabin eleven's was way overcrowded. I had to squeeze on to the edge of a bench with half my butt hanging off. **

Hermes winced "My cabin's too overcrowded."

**I saw Grover sitting at table twelve with Mr. D, a few satyrs, and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D.**

Dionysus looked proud and Ariadne looked mock hurt. No she actually was a little upset that Dionysus had demigod children but not Hera mad.

**Chiron stood to one side, the picnic table being way too small for a centaur.**

**Annabeth sat at table six with a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with her gray eyes and honey-blond hair.**

Athena straightened.

**Clarisse sat behind me at Ares's table. She'd apparently gotten over being hosed down, because she was laughing and belching right alongside her friends. **

"Of course she did!" Ares grinned "She's my kid."

**Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion, and everybody fell silent. He raised a glass. "To the gods!"**

**Everybody else raised their glasses. "To the gods!"**

**Wood nymphs came forward with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and yes, barbecue! My glass was empty, but Luke said, "Speak to it. Whatever you want-nonalcoholic, of course."**

**I said, "Cherry Coke."**

**The glass filled with sparkling caramel liquid.**

**Then I had an idea. "Blue Cherry Coke."**

Everyone looked down.

**The soda turned a violent shade of cobalt.**

**I took a cautious sip. Perfect.**

**I drank a toast to my mother. **

Persephone looked at Hades who himself was bewildered.

**She's not gone, I told myself. Not permanently, anyway. She's in the Underworld. And if that's a real place, then someday…**

Hades shook his head "That isn't possible boy."

**"Here you go, Percy," Luke said, handing me a platter of smoked brisket.**

**I loaded my plate and was about to take a big bite when I noticed everybody getting up, carrying their plates toward the fire in the center of the pavilion. I wondered if they were going for dessert or something.**

**"Come on," Luke told me.**

**As I got closer, I saw that everyone was taking a portion of their meal and dropping it into the fire, the ripest strawberry, the juiciest slice of beef, the warmest, most buttery roll.**

**Luke murmured in my ear, "Burnt offerings for the gods. They like the smell."**

**"You're kidding."**

**His look warned me not to take this lightly, but I couldn't help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food. **

The gods shrugged. It made them feel important.

**Luke approached the fire, bowed his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes. "Hermes."**

**I was next.**

**I wished I knew what god's name to say.**

**Finally, I made a silent plea. Whoever you are, tell me. Please.**

**I scraped a big slice of brisket into the flames.**

**When I caught a whiff of the smoke, I didn't gag.**

**It smelled nothing like burning food. It smelled of hot chocolate and fresh-baked brownies, hamburgers on the grill and wildflowers, and a hundred other good things that shouldn't have gone well together, but did. I could almost believe the gods could live off that smoke.**

Hades rolled his eyes "No we can't. Phobos tried."

**Mr. D got up with a huge sigh. "Yes, I suppose I'd better say hello to all you brats. Well, hello. Our activities director, Chiron, says the next capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five presently holds the laurels."**

**A bunch of ugly cheering rose from the Ares table.**

**"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I couldn't care less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson." **

Everybody laughed remembering what happen a while ago. Dionysus scowled annoyed.

**Chiron murmured something.**

**"Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on."**

**Everybody cheered. We all headed down toward the amphitheater, where Apollo's cabin led a sing-along. We sang camp songs about the gods and ate s'mores and joked around, and the funny thing was, I didn't feel that anyone was staring at me anymore. I felt that I was home.**

**Later in the evening, when the sparks from the campfire were curling into a starry sky, the conch horn blew again, and we all filed back to our cabins. I didn't realize how exhausted I was until I collapsed on my borrowed sleeping bag.**

**My fingers curled around the Minotaur's horn. I thought about my mom, but I had good thoughts: her smile, the bedtime stories she would read me when I was a kid, the way she would tell me not to let the bedbugs bite.**

**When I closed my eyes, I fell asleep instantly.**

**That was my first day at Camp Half-Blood.**

**I wish I'd known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home. **

"That'a it." Ariadne said as she closed the book. Hera nodded thoughtfully "OK, one more chapter and then it's off to bed."

Just then a golden glow came and placed something or someone or the cold floor. They all leaned forward to see who or what it was...

* * *

**Well I'm ending this here. Who or what do you think it is? Let me know. Next chapter Thalia gets claimed! I can't wait to write Hercules' reaction so i'll hopefully update soon. Going for the weekly updates. If you have any good ideas about what Hercules should do or say PM me or let me know in a review. I'll be glad to hear them.**

**Now there are 163 followers and 103 favorites. Thanks a lot you guys! And now the response to the reviews:**

_**Percabethlvrknowsall: Maybe, who knows? Wait I do, anyways I've made a decision so read on to find out. I will do a bonus chapter to see what would have happened if the other things had happened. Perhaps at the end of the story. Just their reactions though.**_

_**Taeniaea: Thanks!**_

_** .latchem: Thanks for the encouragement and as I told Percabethlvrknowsall I've made a decision so you'll see soon enough.**_

_**ImmortalHeroineOfOlympus and Halliwell2002007: Yeah, I'm not sure why that happened, because when I typed it on Word it was absoloutely fine but somewhere along the way... I guess a technical difficulty.**_

_**Seithr-Kairy: Your welcome too. Yeah, I thought the other fics made Amphitrite a bit too cold or nice to Percy without explanation or showing how this happened. Just my take on the stepmom/stepchild relationship.**_

_**allen r: Welcome back! About the whole taking more people out. I'm doing that, as soon as Thalia is taken away older Thalia will take her place, the same with Nico. I'm only doing that so people can relate with Percy other then Jason. Otherwise the age will remain the same. And no one is going to be taken away for long periods of time. The other demigods are going to start supporting Percy. Now about Annabeth, all the other fics I've seen have Annabeth making fun of Percy not defending him.**_

_**paradiseisland101: Hi! I'm glad you like it. I just realized you're reading my fic and I'm reading a couple of yours. And like I've said above the bold unbolded text was a technical difficulty. Really nice to know you're reading!**_

_**PJO4Ever1218: Thanks for calling this awesome! This is a bit late update. **_

**Thanks a ton to the rest of you as well.**

**~Sakuya~**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello, I was quick this time right? Well everyone those were some great guesses. But here we are.. without further ado... The mystery person! And as we all know by now I CelestialTitania have no claim to the PJO series what so ever. Let's read, shall we?**

* * *

_Just then a golden glow came and placed something or someone or the cold floor. They all leaned forward to see who or what it was... _

A boy stood up with messy jet black hair and a purple cape flowing behind him. He looked around him, spotted the gods and demigods and realized where he was "So, I'm back."

"PERCY!" Thalia, Nico and Orion shouted and Theseus nodded at him. Jason stared at Percy, his apparent Greek counter part, his eyes swept over the purple cape. _So he's praetor, already. _

Percy smiled weakly "Hey guys, it's been a tiring time." Perseus looked at his namesake "What have you been up to?" Percy shrugged "A quest, I'd strangle you Nico, if you knew what I was talking about or what _this_," he grabbed his cape "meant, but right now, I don't think you know." Of course the poor boy shook his head remembering the time he was held at sword point by the throat. Not fun.

Poseidon slightly smiled "Welcome back, my boy. Let's start reading then shall we?" Triton nodded "Nice cape." Percy grinned "Thanks, took a lot to get it." Jason winced, wondering what act of bravery Percy preformed to become praetor in eight months. He paled, with G-Queen Dirt Face (as Leo called her) rising anything could've happened. Percy must have saved them. He was a bit jealous but also thankful. Jason's jaw dropped and he stood up "You have your memories!" he shouted.

Percy looked confused for a sec "Jason Grace, huh? So you're Thalia Grace's brother? Wow, you guys don't look alike." Jason laughed "So I've been told." Thalia was tempted to hit them but she was curious about where Percy heard about Jason, and how he knew Jason was her brother. She decided to ask later during a break. The gods seemed pretty confused and annoyed and looked like they were going to interrupt any moment. "So you're Percy Jackson? Camp loves you."

Percy grinned "Nice to hear, memories, well... Sorry I don't have any gorgon's blood left." Jason's eyes widened before he backed away "I'm good, we're confusing everyone, shall we?" Percy nodded. Triton rolled his eyes annoyed at not knowing what the conversation was about, took the book "_I'll_ read."

**Chapter 8... We Capture A Flag**

**The next few days I settled into a routine that felt almost normal, if you don't count the fact that I was getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs, and a centaur.**

Hercules grinned "Chiron is pretty awesome." The others rolled their eyes "Don't we know it."

**Each morning I took Ancient Greek from Annabeth, **

"For some reason, Latin was easier." Percy whispered to Jason, who grinned.

**and we talked about the gods and goddesses in the present tense, which was kind of weird. I discovered Annabeth was right about my dyslexia: Ancient Greek wasn't that hard for me to read. At least, no harder than English. After a couple of mornings, I could stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much headache. **

"Scratch that, I'd take Latin over Greek any day." Percy muttered to Jason who nodded "Greek is pretty hard. I think this book can convert into any language that you feel is easy to read." The two nodded thankfully.

**The rest of the day, I'd rotate through outdoor activities, looking for something I was good at. Chiron tried to teach me archery, but we found out pretty quick I wasn't any good with a bow and arrow. He didn't complain, even when he had to snag a stray arrow out of his tail. **

"Where was he?" Apollo asked, and Percy blushed "Behind me." Artemis and Zoe stifled laughter, while everyone else felt sorry for Chiron. Hades nodded at Poseidon "Just like you brother, horrible at archery." Orion pouted he had hoped Percy, (unlike his brothers) would be good at archery, something he loved. But nooooo.

Theseus smirked "How?" Percy shrugged "I don't remember."

**Foot racing? No good either. The wood-nymph instructors left me in the dust. They told me not to worry about it. They'd had centuries of practice running away from lovesick gods. But still, it was a little humiliating to be slower than a tree.**

**And wrestling? Forget it. Every time I got on the mat, Clarisse would pulverize me.**

**"There's more where that came from, punk," she'd mumble in my ear. **

Ares cheered while everyone groaned. "Great," Hephaestus muttered "Now he's gonna get a big head."

**The only thing I really excelled at was canoeing, and that wasn't the kind of heroic skill people expected to see from the kid who had beaten the Minotaur. **

Zeus grinned "Yes brother, your child only excels at _canoeing_? What is that? A type of boat?" Nods came around as Zeus and Hades snickered while Poseidon glared.

**I knew the senior campers and counselors were watching me, trying to decide who my dad was, but they weren't having an easy time of it. I wasn't as strong as the Ares kids, **

"No one ever is." Ares lamented/boasted. The others nodded sympathetically(not).

** or as good at archery as the Apollo kids. **

Apollo tried to grin optimistically "We'll just have to try and change that." He said determinedly and Percy appreciated the thought. Even though he was hopeless, of course he wasn't gonna say that.

**I didn't have Hephaestus's skill with metalwork, **

"Sorry." Hephaestus shrugged "Most don't have the ability to handle the metal."

** or-gods forbid- Dionysus's way with vine plants. **

Dionysus sneered "Feeling's mutual kid and anyways even if you were my kid. Thank the gods you're not, you would've been claimed immediately, since I'm there brat!" Poseidon glared but looked a bit sympathetic, Dionysus was really mad about his description and things about himself in the book.

**Luke told me I might be a child of Hermes, a kind of jack-of-all-trades, master of none. But I got the feeling he was just trying to make me feel better. He really didn't know what to make of me either. **

Hermes looked sad before Percy cheered him up. "Actually Lord Hermes, it would be pretty fun to be your kid. Travis and Conner- your kids- they always get away with the best pranks." Hermes grinned "My kids are pretty awesome." Orion groaned "Really, how much punishment?"

"Not too much." Orion glared at the floor "I never get away with good pranks." Hermes grinned feeling much better. Artemis watched the exchange and thought it was typical boy behaviour though it did cheer up Hermes.

Poseidon on the other hand looked offended that his kids would rather be Hermes' kids than his. Amphitrite rolled her eyes "Oh close your mouth. They're just trying to make him feel better."

**Despite all that, I liked camp. I got used to the morning fog over the beach, the smell of hot strawberry fields in the afternoon, even the weird noises of monsters in the woods at night. I would eat dinner with cabin eleven, scrape part of my meal into the fire, and try to feel some connection to my real dad. Nothing came. Just that warm feeling I'd always had, like the memory of his smile. I tried not to think too much about my mom, but I kept wondering: if gods and monsters were real, if all this magical stuff was possible, surely there was some way to save her, to bring her back…. **

Hades looked at him in the eye "You are an idiot." Percy grinned "I've been told." The demigods (excluding Nico and Thalia) were amazed that he could talk like that to such a powerful god.

**I started to understand Luke's bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, Hermes. So okay, maybe gods had important things to do. But couldn't they call once in a while, or thunder, or something? Dionysus could make Diet Coke appear out of thin air. Why couldn't my dad, whoever he was, make a phone appear? **

Poseidon looked guilt before he and all the gods glared at Zeus. Zeus shifted uncomfortably making the demigods stifle laughs.

**Thursday afternoon, three days after I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood, I had my first sword-fighting lesson. Everybody from cabin eleven gathered in the big circular arena, where Luke would be our instructor.**

**We started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor. I guess I did okay. At least, I understood what I was supposed to do and my reflexes were good.**

**The problem was, I couldn't find a blade that felt right in my hands. Either they were too heavy, or too light, or too long. Luke tried his best to fix me up, but he agreed that none of the practice blades seemed to work for me.**

**We moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced he would be my partner, since this was my first time. **

Thalia looked at Percy "It must've sucked to lose huh?" Nico frowned "No way, 5 drachmas Percy won." Thalia smiled "You're on cuz."

Hermes and Poseidon looked at each other "How about we bet to Uncle P? My son wins against yours? " Poseidon grinned "100 gold drachmas." They shook hands "Deal."

Percy looked on in amusement at the two deals that were made.

**"Good luck," one of the campers told me. "Luke's the best swordsman in the last three hundred years."**

**"Maybe he'll go easy on me," I said.**

**The camper snorted. **

"Do you remember the name?" Hermes questioned, he wanted hear about his kids. Percy thought about it before shrugging "I think it was Chris Rodriguez." Hermes nodded thoughtfully.

**Luke showed me thrusts and parries and shield blocks the hard way. With every swipe, I got a little more battered and bruised. "Keep your guard up, Percy," he'd say, then whap me in the ribs with the flat of his blade. "No, not that far up!" Whap! "Lunge!" Whap! "Now, back!" Whap! **

Thalia and Hermes looked smug while Nico and Poseidon gulped looking towards Percy.

**By the time he called a break, I was soaked in sweat. Everybody swarmed the drinks cooler. Luke poured ice water on his head, which looked like such a good idea, I did the same. **

Nico and Poseidon grinned while Thalia and Hermes' jaw dropped. "Not that I care, but that was cheating." Nico muttered. Percy grinned "All's fair in war and preparing for it." Ares grinned while Aphrodite frowned "Sweetie, the saying would all's fair in _love_, war and preparing for it." Percy shrugged.

**Instantly, I felt better. Strength surged back into my arms. The sword didn't feel so awkward.**

**"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy doesn't mind, I want to give you a little demo."**

**Great, I thought. Let's all watch Percy get pounded.**

**The Hermes guys gathered around. They were suppressing smiles. I figured they'd been in my shoes before and couldn't wait to see how Luke used me for a punching bag. He told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy's blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon. **

******"This is difficult," he stressed. "I've had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique."**

"Got it in a week." Thalia smirked.

"Got it in 2 days." Hercules muttered. Zoe glared, bragger.

**He demonstrated the move on me in slow motion. Sure enough, the sword clattered out of my hand.**

**"Now in real time," he said, after I'd retrieved my weapon. "We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?"**

**I nodded, and Luke came after me. Somehow, I kept him from getting a shot at the hilt of my sword. My senses opened up. I saw his attacks coming. I countered. I stepped forward and tried a thrust of my own. Luke deflected it easily, but I saw a change in his face. His eyes narrowed, and he started to press me with more force.**

**The sword grew heavy in my hand. The balance wasn't right. I knew it was only a matter of seconds before Luke took me down, so I figured, What the heck?**

**I tried the disarming maneuver.**

**My blade hit the base of Luke's and I twisted, putting my whole weight into a downward thrust.**

**Clang.**

**Luke's sword rattled against the stones. The tip of my blade was an inch from his undefended chest. **

Percy smirked at Hercules "First try." Thalia and Hermes very reluctantly handed over the money and Nico and Poseidon grinned. Zoe stared at the drachmas in Nico's hand. "Why do thou have gold drachmas?" Zoe asked. Nico stared at his palm

"In the future, there's different money, so we have gold drachmas to do Iris messages and that sort of stuff." Thalia explained. Jason stared at the drachmas and whispered to Percy "Romans have..." "Denarii. I know." "And no-" "Iris-messages, I know that too." Jason nodded glumly.

**The other campers were silent.**

**I lowered my sword. "Um, sorry."**

**For a moment, Luke was too stunned to speak.**

**"Sorry?" His scarred face broke into a grin. "By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!"**

**I didn't want to. The short burst of manic energy had completely abandoned me. But Luke insisted.**

**This time, there was no contest. The moment our swords connected, Luke hit my hilt and sent my weapon skidding across the floor.**

**After a long pause, somebody in the audience said, "Beginner's luck?" **

Hermes stared at Percy who muttered "Conner Stoll."

**Luke wiped the sweat off his brow. He appraised at me with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he said. "But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword… ."**

"Change the fate of the world." Thalia said ominously, making people stare at her.

**Friday afternoon, I was sitting with Grover at the lake, resting from a near-death experience on the climbing wall. Grover had scampered to the top like a mountain goat, but the lava had almost gotten me. My shirt had smoking holes in it. The hairs had been singed off my forearms.**

**We sat on the pier, watching the naiads do underwater basket-weaving, until I got up the nerve to ask Grover how his conversation had gone with Mr. D.**

**His face turned a sickly shade of yellow.**

**"Fine," he said. "Just great." **

Hermes gave Dionysus a threatening warning look.

**"So your career's still on track?"**

**He glanced at me nervously. "Chiron t-told you I want a searcher's license?" **

"What's a searcher's license?" Perseus spoke up.

**"Well… no." I had no idea what a searcher's license was, but it didn't seem like the right time to ask. "He just said you had big plans, you know … and that you needed credit for completing a keeper's assignment. So did you get it?"**

**Grover looked down at the naiads. "Mr. D suspended judgment. He said I hadn't failed or succeeded with you yet, so our fates were still tied together. If you got a quest and I went along to protect you, and we both came back alive, then maybe he'd consider the job complete."**

**My spirits lifted. "Well, that's not so bad, right?"**

**"Blaa-ha-ha! He might as well have transferred me to stable-cleaning duty. The chances of you getting a quest… and even if you did, why would you want me along?" **

Hermes looked horrified "Why wouldn't he?"

**"Of course I'd want you along!"**

Hermes smiled at Percy "You're a good kid."

"Er, thanks?"

**Grover stared glumly into the water. "Basket-weaving … Must be nice to have a useful skill."**

**I tried to reassure him that he had lots of talents, but that just made him look more miserable. We talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while, then debated the pros and cons of the different gods. Finally, I asked him about the four empty cabins.**

**"Number eight, the silver one, belongs to Artemis," he said. "She vowed to be a maiden forever. So of course, no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she didn't have one, she'd be mad." **

"Well..." Artemis tried to protest but no words came. Fortunately for her Zoe spoke up "The Hunters use that cabin." Nico rolled his eyes, still holding a grudge against Zoe "And burn the rest." Zoe glared but didn't do anything.

**"Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the Big Three?"**

**Grover tensed. We were getting close to a touchy subject. "No. One of them, number two, is Hera's," he said. "That's another honorary thing. She's the goddess of marriage, so of course she wouldn't go around having affairs with mortals. **

Hera nodded with a smile.

**That's her husband's job. **

Smile turned into glare.

**When we say the Big Three, we mean the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos."**

**"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades."**

**"Right. You know. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what."**

**"Zeus got the sky," I remembered. "Poseidon the sea, Hades the Underworld."**

**"Uh-huh."**

**"But Hades doesn't have a cabin here." **

Hades glared, and Persephone laid a hand on his arm, (making Demeter tense). "My lord, it's not as if you need a cabin." Hades scowled "Neither does _she_," he pointed at Hera "but she has one." Zeus looked away in guilt, while the Furies seemed to bore holes in to him.

**"No. He doesn't have a throne on Olympus, either. He sort of does his own thing down in the Underworld. If he did have a cabin here …" Grover shuddered. "Well, it wouldn't be pleasant. Let's leave it at that." **

Nico resisted the urge to retaliate and Hades looked like he was going to destroy the book. Percy spoke up "It was a personal issue with some of the monsters. Grover doesn't mean it anymore." Thankfully the comment calmed them down and no one but Jason heard Percy's small "I think."

**"But Zeus and Poseidon-they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?" **

They all leaned forward. Poseidon was one thing, but Zeus? This was serious.

**Grover shifted his hooves uncomfortably. "About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes. Their children were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II, you know, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx." **

Zeus glared at Poseidon. "You're good with oaths brother."

**Thunder boomed.**

**I said, "That's the most serious oath you can make."**

**Grover nodded.**

**"And the brothers kept their word-no kids?"**

**Grover's face darkened. "Seventeen years ago,**

"Seventeen years ago, Percy's currently twelve meaning five years before me brother." Poseidon spoke to Zeus.

** Zeus fell off the wagon. There was this TV starlet with a big fluffy eighties hairdo-he just couldn't help himself. When their child was born, a little girl named Thalia**

On top of Thalia's head a platinum/silver lightning bolt appeared and faded. Hercules and Perseus looked at their 'new' sister. Zeus looked at his daughter. Hercules was annoyed the annoying little girl was his half-sister? Just great. She didn't even look like a girl. Hades rolled his eyes "Of course, you two force me into something and yet you don't keep it yourself." He looked at the futures "I don't break it do I?" Thalia shook her head "No, Lord Hades."

** .. . well, the River Styx is serious about promises. Zeus himself got off easy because he's immortal, but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter."**

**"But that isn't fair.' It wasn't the little girl's fault." **

"Little girl? Thanks Percy."

**Grover hesitated. "Percy, children of the Big Three have powers greater than other half-bloods. They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters. When Hades found out about the girl, he wasn't too happy about Zeus breaking his oath. Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia.**

Hades looked away guiltily, while Zeus resisted the urge to seriously hurt Hades.

** A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do. He tried to escort her here with a couple of other half-bloods she'd befriended. They almost made it. They got all the way to the top of that hill."**

**He pointed across the valley, to the pine tree where I'd fought the minotaur. "All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a horde of hellhounds. They were about to be overrun when Thalia told her satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monsters. She was wounded and tired, and she didn't want to live like a hunted animal. The satyr didn't want to leave her, but he couldn't change her mind, and he had to protect the others. So Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of that hill. As she died, Zeus took pity on her. He turned her into that pine tree. Her spirit still helps protect the borders of the valley. That's why the hill is called Half-Blood Hill." **

Jason stared at his sister "You. Turned. Into. A. Tree?" She nodded and the two didn't say another word.

**I stared at the pine in the distance.**

**The story made me feel hollow, and guilty too. A girl my age had sacrificed herself to save her friends. She had faced a whole army of monsters. Next to that, my victory over the Minotaur didn't seem like much. I wondered, if I'd acted differently, could I have saved my mother? **

Thalia looked at Percy incredously "I had years of fighting on my own Percy, you just found out about this stuff. I think it was pretty good for a first timer under pressure." Theseus nodded "Besides, you're second monster was the Minotaur. _I _had years of training with Chiron and found it difficult, you didn't even have a weapon." Percy smiled halfheartedly "Thanks."Jason stared at Percy "I hope you weren't as sappy in camp." Percy rose a brow "Had no memories, and had to carry a hippy Juno. With gorgons chasing me for weeks, no time to be sappy."

**"Grover," I said, "have heroes really gone on quests to the Underworld?"**

**"Sometimes," he said. "Orpheus. Hercules.**

Hercules grinned at the reminder while Hades glared.

** Houdini."**

**"And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?" **

"Boy, you do realize it is virtually impossible?" Percy nodded "Um, I think it was something about you keeping your debts?"

**"No. Never. Orpheus came close… . Percy, you're not seriously thinking-"**

**"No," I lied. "I was just wondering. So … a satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod?"**

**Grover studied me warily. I hadn't persuaded him that I'd really dropped the Underworld idea. "Not always. We go undercover to a lot of schools. We try to sniff out the half-bloods who have the makings of great heroes. If we find one with a very strong aura, like a child of the Big Three, we alert Chiron. He tries to keep an eye on them, since they could cause really huge problems."**

**"And you found me. Chiron said you thought I might be something special."**

******Grover looked as if I'd just led him into a trap. "I didn't… Oh, listen, don't think like that. If you were-you know-you'd never ever be allowed a quest, and I'd never get my license. You're probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge. Don't worry, okay?"**

Percy stared at the book "Nope, Nemesis is a goddess." _'As if Ethan Nakamura let me forget it. Though I think this book ios helping recall my memories more than the gorgon's blood.'_

**I got the idea he was reassuring himself more than me.**

**That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual.**

**At last, it was time for capture the flag.**

**When the plates were cleared away, the conch horn sounded and we all stood at our tables.**

**Campers yelled and cheered as Annabeth and two of her siblings ran into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It was about ten feet long, glistening gray, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree. From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and her buddies ran in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a bloody spear and a boar's head.**

**I turned to Luke and yelled over the noise, "Those are the flags?" **

"No, they're flying pigs." Persephone rolled her eyes while Percy shuddered. "Uh, no thanks I really don't think I like flying pigs."

**"Yeah."**

**"Ares and Athena always lead the teams?"**

**"Not always," he said. "But often."**

**"So, if another cabin captures one, what do you do- repaint the flag?" **

Ares looked interested.

**He grinned. "You'll see. First we have to get one."**

**"Whose side are we on?"**

**He gave me a sly look, as if he knew something I didn't. The scar on his face made him look almost evil in the torchlight. **

_Because he is_. Nico thought venomously in his head.

**"We've made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And you are going to help."**

**The teams were announced. Athena had made an alliance with Apollo and Hermes, the two biggest cabins. Apparently, privileges had been traded-shower times, chore schedules, the best slots for activities-in order to win support.**

**Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus. From what I'd seen, Dionysus's kids were actually good athletes, but there were only two of them. Demeter's kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff but they weren't very aggressive. Aphrodite's sons and daughters I wasn't too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped. Hephaestus's kids weren't pretty, and there were only four of them, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day. They might be a problem. That, of course, left Ares's cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long Island, or anywhere else on the planet.**

**Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble.**

**"Heroes!" he announced. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"**

**He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment: helmets, bronze swords, spears, oxhide shields coated in metal.**

**"Whoa," I said. "We're really supposed to use these?" **

"What else?" Ares asked.

**Luke looked at me as if I were crazy. "Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five. Here-Chiron thought these would fit. You'll be on border patrol." **

Athena frowned "A beginner on border patrol? What is she thinking?"

**My shield was the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle. It weighed about a million pounds. I could have snowboarded on it fine, but I hoped nobody seriously expected me to run fast. My helmet, like all the helmets on Athena's side, had a blue horsehair plume on top. Ares and their allies had red plumes.**

**Annabeth yelled, "Blue team, forward!"**

**We cheered and shook our swords and followed her down the path to the south woods. The red team yelled taunts at us as they headed off toward the north.**

**I managed to catch up with Annabeth without tripping over my equipment. "Hey."**

**She kept marching. **

Ariadne looked at the book "Isn't she rude?"

**"So what's the plan?" I asked. "Got any magic items you can loan me?"**

**Her hand drifted toward her pocket, as if she were afraid I'd stolen something.**

**"Just watch Clarisse's spear," she said. "You don't want that thing touching you. Otherwise, don't worry. We'll take the banner from Ares. Has Luke given you your job?"**

**"Border patrol, whatever that means."**

**"It's easy. Stand by the creek, keep the reds away. Leave the rest to me. Athena always has a plan."**

**She pushed ahead, leaving me in the dust.**

**"Okay," I mumbled. "Glad you wanted me on your team." **

"Annie, that isn't nice." Thalia scolded.

**It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark, with fireflies popping in and out of view. Annabeth stationed me next to a little creek that gurgled over some rocks, then she and the rest of the team scattered into the trees.**

**Standing there alone, with my big blue-feathered helmet and my huge shield, I felt like an idiot. The bronze sword, like all the swords I'd tried so far, seemed balanced wrong. The leather grip pulled on my hand like a bowling ball.**

**There was no way anybody would actually attack me, would they? I mean, Olympus had to have liability issues, right? **

Apollo sighed "If only we did. Sorry cuz."

**Far away, the conch horn blew. I heard whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, kids fighting. A blue-plumed ally from Apollo raced past me like a deer, leaped through the creek, and disappeared into enemy territory.**

**Great, I thought. I'll miss all the fun, as usual.**

**Then I heard a sound that sent a chill up my spine, a low canine growl, somewhere close by.**

**I raised my shield instinctively; I had the feeling something was stalking me.**

**Then the growling stopped. I felt the presence retreating. **

**On the other side of the creek, the underbrush exploded. Five Ares warriors came yelling and screaming out of the dark.**

**"Cream the punk!" Clarisse screamed.**

**Her ugly pig eyes glared through the slits of her helmet. She brandished a five-foot-long spear, its barbed metal tip flickering with red light. Her siblings had only the standard-issue bronze swords-not that that made me feel any better.**

**They charged across the stream. There was no help in sight. I could run. Or I could defend myself against half the Ares cabin.**

**I managed to sidestep the first kid's swing, but these guys were not as stupid the Minotaur. They surrounded me, and Clarisse thrust at me with her spear. My shield deflected the point, but I felt a painful tingling all over my body. My hair stood on end. My shield arm went numb, and the air burned.**

**Electric. Her stupid spear was electric.**

Zeus smirked, electricity was what he was best at.

** I fell back.**

**Another Ares guy slammed me in the chest with the butt of his sword and I hit the dirt.**

Persephone winced. Alecto spoke up "If that was the girl's plan it was a terrible one."

Eyes went on Percy, who nodded sheepishly. Athena groaned "Worst plan ever."

**They could've kicked me into jelly, but they were too busy laughing.**

**"Give him a haircut," Clarisse said. "Grab his hair." **

Athena grimaced at the glare she was receiving from the gods while the demigods glared at the book. "Really Annabeth?" Jason asked "I thought you were smarter than that."

**I managed to get to my feet. I raised my sword, but Clarisse slammed it aside with her spear as sparks flew. Now both my arms felt numb.**

**"Oh, wow," Clarisse said. "I'm scared of this guy. Really scared."**

**"The flag is that way," I told her. I wanted to sound angry, but I was afraid it didn't come out that way. **

Hercules rose a brow, he got the plan and he thought it was cowardly.

**"Yeah," one of her siblings said. "But see, we don't care about the flag. We care about a guy who made our cabin look stupid."**

**"You do that without my help," I told them. It probably wasn't the smartest thing to say.**

**Two of them came at me. I backed up toward the creek, tried to raise my shield, but Clarisse was too fast. Her spear stuck me straight in the ribs. If I hadn't been wearing an armored breastplate, I would've been shish-ke-bobbed. As it was, the electric point just about shocked my teeth out of my mouth. One of her cabin mates slashed his sword across my arm, leaving a good-size cut.**

**Seeing my own blood made me dizzy-warm and cold at the same time.**

**"No maiming," I managed to say.**

**"Oops," the guy said. "Guess I lost my dessert privilege.**

"Punishment? That's not a punishment." Jason said horrified. Percy nodded "After everything's over, we're changing some things." Jason nodded in agreement.

**He pushed me into the creek and I landed with a splash. They all laughed. I figured as soon as they were through being amused, I would die. But then something happened. The water seemed to wake up my senses, as if I'd just had a bag of my mom's double-espresso jelly beans. **

"Go Percy!" Orion, Hermes and Apollo cheered.

**Clarisse and her cabinmates came into the creek to get me, but I stood to meet them. I knew what to do. I swung the flat of my sword against the first guy's head and knocked his helmet clean off. I hit him so hard I could see his eyes vibrating as he crumpled into the water. **

Perseus looked at Orion and Theseus "Can you two do that?" The two nodded.

**Ugly Number Two and Ugly Number Three came at me. I slammed one in the face with my shield and used my sword to shear off the other guy's horsehair plume. Both of them backed up quick. Ugly Number Four didn't look really anxious to attack, but Clarisse kept coming, the point of her spear crackling with energy. As soon as she thrust, I caught the shaft between the edge of my shield and my sword, and I snapped it like a twig. **

"Ah!" Ares looked horrified "It was an electric spear, you had to break it?!"

**"Ah!" she screamed. "You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!" **

**She probably would've said worse, but I smacked her between the eyes with my sword-butt and sent her stumbling backward out of the creek.**

**Then I heard yelling, elated screams, and I saw Luke racing toward the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He was flanked by a couple of Hermes guys covering his retreat, and a few Apollos behind them, fighting off the Hephaestus kids. The Ares folks got up, and Clarisse muttered a dazed curse.**

**"A trick!" she shouted. "It was a trick."**

**They staggered after Luke, but it was too late. Everybody converged on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. Our side exploded into cheers. The red banner shimmered and turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven. Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders. Chiron cantered out from the woods and blew the conch horn.**

**The game was over. We'd won.**

**I was about to join the celebration when Annabeth's voice, right next to me in the creek, said, "Not bad, hero."**

**I looked, but she wasn't there. **

"Huh?"

**"Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" she asked. The air shimmered, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she'd just taken it off her head.**

**I felt myself getting angry. I wasn't even fazed by the fact that she'd just been invisible. "You set me up," I said. "You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out."**

**Annabeth shrugged. "I told you. Athena always has a plan." **

"Not a plan that can kill someone inexperienced." Athena groaned. Her daughter was right about having a plan, but that will seriously hurt someone?...

**"A plan to get me pulverized."**

**"I came as fast as I could. I was about to jump in, but …" She shrugged. "You didn't need help."**

**Then she noticed my wounded arm. "How did you do that?"**

**"Sword cut," I said. "What do you think?"**

**"No. It was a sword cut. Look at it."**

**The blood was gone. Where the huge cut had been, there was a long white scratch, and even that was fading. As I** **watched,** **it turned into a small scar, and disappeared. **

Jaws dropped and Perseus faced the two once more. The two nodded before Perseus ask.

**"I-I don't get it," I said.**

**Annabeth was thinking hard. I could almost see the gears turning. She looked down at my feet, then at Clarisse's broken spear, and said, "Step out of the water, Percy."**

**"What-"**

**"Just do it."**

**I came out of the creek and immediately felt bone tired. My arms started to go numb again. My adrenaline rush left me. I almost fell over, but Annabeth steadied me. **

Amphitrite glared at the book "Least she could do after nearly killing the boy." Then she blinked in surprise at her words as did Poseidon and Triton. Triton shook of his shock and continued reading.

**"Oh, Styx," she cursed. "This is not good. I didn't want … I assumed it would be Zeus… ."**

**Before I could ask what she meant, I heard that canine growl again, but much closer than before. A howl ripped through the forest.**

**The campers' cheering died instantly. Chiron shouted something in Ancient Greek, which I would realize, only later, I had understood perfectly: "Stand ready! My bow!"**

**Annabeth drew her sword.**

**There on the rocks just above us was a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers.**

**It was looking straight at me.**

**Nobody moved except Annabeth, who yelled, "Percy, run!"**

**She tried to step in front of me, but the hound was too fast. It leaped over her-an enormous shadow with teeth-and just as it hit me, as I stumbled backward and felt its razor-sharp claws ripping through my armor, there was a cascade of thwacking sounds, like forty pieces of paper being ripped one after the other. From the hounds neck sprouted a cluster of arrows. The monster fell dead at my feet. **

"Hades..." Poseidon quietly growled but Nico cut in. "It wasn't Hades, Lord Poseidon." Hades shot his nephew a grateful glance.

**By some miracle, I was still alive. I didn't want to look underneath the ruins of my shredded armor. My chest felt warm and wet, and I knew I was badly cut. Another second, and the monster would've turned me into a hundred pounds of delicatessen meat.**

**Chiron trotted up next to us, a bow in his hand, his face grim.**

**"Di immortales!" Annabeth said. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't … they're not supposed to …"**

**"Someone summoned it," Chiron said. "Someone inside the camp."**

**Luke came over, the banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone.**

**Clarisse yelled, "It's all Percy's fault! Percy summoned it!" **

They all stared at Ares and said collectively "Your daughter is crazy." Percy and Jason snickered, Clarisse would hate what she said now. And be really embarrassed.

**"Be quiet, child," Chiron told her.**

**We watched the body of the hell-hound melt into shadow, soaking into the ground until it disappeared.**

**"You're wounded," Annabeth told me. "Quick, Percy, get in the water."**

**"I'm okay."**

**"No, you're not," she said. "Chiron, watch this."**

**I was too tired to argue. I stepped back into the creek, the whole camp gathering around me.**

**Instantly, I felt better. I could feel the cuts on my chest closing up. Some of the campers gasped.**

**"Look, I-I don't know why," I said, trying to apologize. "I'm sorry…." **

"You're apologizing for being claimed." Jason asked Percy who shrugged. Jason shook his head "You're crazy," he decided.

**But they weren't watching my wounds heal. They were staring at something above my head. **

**"Percy," Annabeth said, pointing. "Um …"**

**By the time I looked up, the sign was already fading, but I could still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming. A three-tipped spear: a trident.**

**"Your father," Annabeth murmured. "This is really not good." **

Poseidon frowned "Why not?" Zeus rolled his eyes "The oath." Poseidon nodded.

**"It is determined," Chiron announced.**

**All around me, campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, though they didn't look happy about it. **

Percy grinned "Best time ever."

**"My father?" I asked, completely bewildered.**

**"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."**

Triton snapped the book close, indicating it was the end of the chapter. Hera stood up. "Percy, it is great to have you back. May you tell us more about your former conversation with Jason Grace and why you are wearing the purple cape?" A note fluttered down.

_Our apologies, Lady Hera,_

_This we assure you was your doing. You'll find out in a couple hundred years or so?... Anyways, no Percy may not disclose any conversation. The only person he may speak to this about is the people we will continue to send in, Jason Grace and this individual. _

A silver glow swirled around Thalia and in her place was an older Thalia who had a silver circlet visible in her hair (which caught Zoe's attention), a Death to Barbie shirt with punk bad buttons and looked like she hadn't slept in days.

The note continued

_We exchanged Thalia for an older Thalia that understands what's going on. We are going to do the same to Nico soon. But later. For now it would be **wise** to get to sleep. Please do not hound Perseus Jackson for answers. And if you're really curious the seventh book, holds the answers._

_The Fates, Astounding Apollo and Magnificent Hermes _

Hera nodded, "I see. One more thing Jason Grace, Percy said you and Thalia are siblings. Full-blooded or half-blooded?" Percy cut in "Half, from their mom." Hera nodded and turned to Hermes. "Take them to bed." She stalked away her head held high. Jason went to Percy and whispered "Why'd you lie?" Percy shrugged "I din't lie. Roman, Greek. Different." Jason rolled his eyes. All of the demigods except for Zoe followed Hermes to their temporary rooms.

Zoe left with Artemis wondering about the silver circlet, she saw in Thalia's hair. They didn't get far before they saw Thalia hug Percy super hard.

"Well, you're safe. How was?..." Percy shrugged "It's pretty... Awesome." Jason grinned "It is, isn't it?" Thalia rolled her eyes "Just get to sleep." They all followed Hermes to their respective rooms.

"Thalia you can have that room." Hermes pointed to a silvery, black room decorated with lightning bolts. "Hercules and Perseus can have the one beside it." It was exactly the same without the silver. "Nico," The Furies came behind him "The boy has permission to sleep in one of our lord's special quarters." Hermes nodded and opened a room that was black with white and silver skulls. "Here you go." Hermes turned to Percy and Jason "If you two don't mind, Uncle P, said you could share a room." The two looked at each other cautiously and nodded "We don't mind." Hermes nodded a pulled open a black and sea-green room that had a wall painted with Pegasus and horses. Percy smiled thinking of Hazel. "Theseus and Orion, here's your's. It was the same thing except there was a library (for Theseus from Athena) and an archery center (for Orion from Artemis). The two smiled liking every bit of it. Hermes left them there and they all entered their respective rooms.

* * *

**Ta-da! I'm done, and this update was 4 days after the last one! I think I finally be able to update weekly and not take too long. Sorry if it wasn't what you all liked, it's just that it keeps getting harder to imagine what the gods and demigods will say. I'm trying to keep Jason a good guy because I've seen tons of fics where he turns into a jealous monster or something like that. Right this Percy is the Percy that is praetor before the ship comes or anything. I'm taking the poll down today. Sorry once again if you're choice wasn't selected. I will write a chapter about what everyone's reaction would be and how Percy would be like. Just without the reading. Next chapter they are sleeping so you could tell me what you want them to do. First though Hercules will talk to Thalia and he is not going to be to nice about it.**

**We have 113 favourites and 183 followers. And this story has hit 100 reviews! Thank you so much, when I wrote this I never expected to have this many people like my story. Really thanks a ton! xD ^_^**

**The responses:**

* * *

**_LadaHathaway: Travis and Connor? Luke? Great guesses. Sorry it wasn't them. Though they were mentioned quite a bit in this chapter._**

**_Jazmine tea: Actual confrontation will happen next chapter. I wasn't able to write about Hercules saying anything during the whole claiming process. Though from his thoughts and the author's note above you know that Hercules will be hurt probably a lot by Thalia. Might have Percy and Zoe join in on the fun._**

**_TearsOfDiamonds: Yeah I heard you loud and clear. Percy it was. That is the plan for the whole swapping idea, but Annabeth idea? I'm kind of reluctant to put her in. I don't want any actual Percabeth in this story, so really sorry._**

**_livelaughloveandread: Thanks! I try. Both to update soon and keep it new and interesting._**

**_PJoHoOFan: Aww! Thanks for calling this epicness! And freaking awesome! Really you touched my heart and made this update happen. SO this update is thanks to your comment! By the way that Greek letter you started and ended your comment with an Ω Omega, the last letter of the greek alphabet. _**

**To everyone else who reviewed I just want to say a huge Thank You!**

**~Sakuya~**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey! I'm back, really sorry but I was way too caught up with school to write or upload. But I've done it now. I hope that I won't disappear again. Enjoy this chapter and I do not have any rights/claim to owning the PJO books, characters and any other things that are put in. Sorry to all of you who wanted a sleep talk scene but I thought that since Ancient Greek doesn't have any technology to not put it in. Though I'll put in a flash back of what Percy and Jason talked about and Zoe may or may not talk to Thalia about the circlet. Read on and see what shall happen!**

Everyone met up in the throne room, their eyes bleary. Hera smiled at everyone "Ready?" They all nodded cautiously, it would be unwise to offend the Queen of the Gods especially in her home land. Zoe looked at Thalia trying to spot the circlet she had seen last night but it was nowhere to be found. The gods were settled on their thrones and the demigods were given comfortable chairs to sit on. Thalia, Percy, and Jason sat together, Nico and the past demigods a few inches away. Zoe sat at the foot of Artemis' throne thought whirling through her mind. Frowning she wondered if the circlet had been a trick of the light, or her a vision from her her sleepy mind. Persephone put out her hand and the book flew into her outstretched hand. "If no minds, I shall read."

**Chapter 9... I Am Offered A Quest**

**The next morning, Chiron moved me to cabin three.**

**I didn't have to share with anybody. I had plenty of room for all my stuff: the Minotaur's horn, one set of spare clothes, and a toiletry bag. I got to sit at my own dinner table, pick all my own activities, call "lights out" whenever I felt like it, and not listen to anybody else. **

Jason leaned over to Percy "Personally I hated it." Percy nodded in agreement.

**And I was absolutely miserable.**

**Just when I'd started to feel accepted, to feel I had a home in cabin eleven and I might be a normal kid—or as normal as you can be when you're a half-blood—I'd been separated out as if I had some rare disease. **

Theseus, Perseus, Orion and all the gods except, huh all of them felt a little (or a lot) bad for Percy. Of course the futures, Hercules and the Furies had no sympathy, not really. (Hercules is a horrible person, the Furies only care about Hades and the futures went through the same thing).

**Nobody mentioned the hellhound, but I got a feeling they were all talking about it behind my back. The attack had scared everybody. It sent two messages: one, that I was the son of the Sea God; and two, monsters would stop as nothing to kill me. They could even invade camp that had always been considered safe.**

**The other campers steered clear of me as much as possible. Cabin eleven was too nervous to have sword class with me after what I'd done to the Ares folks in the woods, so my lessons with Luke became one-on-one. He pushed me harder than ever, and wasn't afraid to bruise me up in the process. **

Nico scowled "Of course." He muttered bitterly but only the demigods heard. The past didn't ask and the futures par Jason understood.

"**You're going to need all the training you can get," he promised, as we were working with swords and flaming torches. "Now let's try that viper-beheading strike again. Fifty more repetitions." **

Ares nodded "Good, that'll toughen you up." Percy looked at Ares weirdle "Can you read?" Ares narrowed his eyes at Percy "Of course I can punk, problem?" Percy shook his head, frowning _Ah well, I still like Mars better than Ares._

**Annabeth still taught me Greek in the mornings, but she seemed distracted. Every time I said something, she scowled at me, as if I'd just poked her between the eyes.**

**After lessons, she would walk away muttering to herself: "Quest…Poseidon?. . .Dirty rotten…Got to make a plan…" **

Athena nodded proud and Aphrodite sulked "You are no fun Theeny!" Aphrodite fake pouted and Athena glared "Don't call me Theeny."

**Even Clarisse kept her distance, though her venomous looks made it clear she wanted to kill me for breaking her magic spear. I wished she would just yell or punch me or something. I'd rather get into fights every day than be ignored.**

**I knew somebody at camp resented me, because one night I came into my cabin and found a mortal newspaper dropped inside the doorway, a copy of the **_**New York Daily News, **_**opened to the Metro page. The article took me almost an hour to read, because the angrier I got, the more the words floated around the page. **

**BOY AND MOTHER STILL MISSING AFTER FREAK CAR ACCIDENT by: Eileen Smythe. Sally Jackson and son Percy are still missing one week after their mysterious disappearance. The family's badly burned '78 Camaro was discovered last Saturday on a north Long Island road with the roof ripped off and the front of the axle broken. The car had flipped and skidded for several hundred feet before exploding.**

**Mother and son had gone for a weekend vacation to Montauk, but left hastily, under mysterious circumstances. Small traces of blood were found in the car and near the scene of the wreck, but there were no other signs of the missing Jacksons. Residents in the rural area reported seeing nothing unusual around the time of the accident.**

**Ms. Jackson's husband, Gabe Ugliano, claims that his stepson, Percy Jackson, is a troubled kid who has been kicked out of numerous boarding schools and has expressed violent tendencies in the past.**

**Police would not say whether son Percy is a suspect in his mother's disappearance, but they have not ruled out foul play. Below are recent pictures of Sally Jackson and Percy. Police urge anyone with information to call the following toll-free crime-stoppers hotline.**

Hestia frowned "Who would do such a thing?" Nico and Percy locked eyes _Luke_.

**The phone number was circled in black marker.**

**I wadded up the paper and threw it away, then flopped down in my bunk bed in the middle of my empty cabin.**

"**Lights out," I told myself miserably.**

**That night, I had my worst dream yet. **

"Yet." Percy reminded when Nico and Thalia looked at him incredously.

**I was running along the beach in a storm. This time, there was a city behind me. Not New York. The sprawl was different: buildings spread father apart, palm trees and hills in the distance.**

**About a hundred yards down the surf, two men were fighting. They looked like TV wrestles, muscular, with beards and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green. They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked, and head-butted, and every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose. I had to stop them I didn't know why. But the harder I ran, the more the wind blew me back, until I was running in place, my heels digging uselessly in the sand. Over the roar of the storm, I could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robbed one, ****_Give it back! Give it back! _****Like a kindergartner fighting over a toy.**

"Blue was Zeus, green Poseidon and kindergartner meaning 5-year old kids." Percy explained when everyone save his closest cousins stared at him. Zeus stared in shock.

**The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach, spraying me with salt.**

**I yelled, **_**Stop it! Stop fighting!**_

**The ground shook. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil it turned my blood to ice.**

_**Come down, little hero, **_**the voice crooned. **_**Come down!**_

**The sand split beneath me, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. My feet slipped, and darkness swallowed me.**

**I woke up, sure I was falling.**

**I was still in bed in cabin three. My body told me it was morning, but it was dark outside, and thunder rolled across the hills. A storm was brewing. I hadn't dreamed that.**

**I heard a clopped sound at the door, a hoof knocking on the threshold.**

"**Come in?"**

**Grover trotted inside, looking worried. "Mr. D wants to see you."**

"**Why?"**

"**He wants to kill…I mean, I'd better let him tell you." **

Ariadne frowned "My lord, you cannot hate every demigod you see."

"B-but," Dionysus tried to protest but Ariadne's look shut him up quick.

**Nervously, I got dressed and followed, sure that I was in huge trouble.**

**For days, I'd been half expecting a summon to the Big House. Now that I was declared a son of Poseidon, one of the Big Three gods who weren't supposed to have kids, I figured it was a crime for me just to be alive. The other gods had probably been debating the best way to punish me for existing, and now Mr. D was ready to deliver their verdict.**

**Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in our direction. I asked Grover if we needed an umbrella.**

"**No," he said. "It never rains here unless we want it to." **

"Or god." Percy put in staring at Zeus. A tad nerved from all that staring on lately Zeus muttered "Sorry." This most absolutely did _not_ surprise _anybody_ at _all_.

**I pointed at the storm. "What the heck is that, then?"**

**He glanced uneasily at the sky. "It'll pass around us. Bad weather always does.**

**I realized he was right. In the week I'd been here, it had never even been overcast. The few rain clouds I'd seen had skirted around the edges of the valley.**

**But this storm…this one was huge. **

Zeus held up his hands before anyone said anything or even looked at him "Future, can't control it now." Everyone looked around awkwardly "Um okay?"

**At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollo's cabin were playing a morning game against the satyrs. Dionysus's twins were walking around in the strawberry fields, making the plants grow. Everybody was going about their normal about their normal business, but they looked tense. They kept their eyes on the storm.**

**Grover and I walked up to the front porch of the Big House. Dionysus sat at the pinochle table in his tiger-striped Hawaiian shirt with his Diet Coke, just as he had on my first day. Chiron sat across the table in his fake wheelchair. They were playing against invisible opponents—two sets of cards hovering in the air.**

"**Well, well," Mr. D said without looking up. "Our little celebrity."**

This time all eyes went on Dionysus who frankly did not care.

**I waited.**

"**Come closer," Mr. D said. "And don't expect me to kowtow to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father." **

Poseidon rose a brow at Dionysus who shrugged "Future, remember?" A smirk on his face as he looked at his father.

**A net of lightning flashed across the clouds. Thunder shook the windows of the house.**

"**Blah, blah, blah," Dionysus said.**

**Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards. Grover cowered by the railing, his hooves clopping back and forth.**

"**If I had my way," Dionysus said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm." **

"It is." Everyone dead panned.

"**Spontaneous combustion is a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.**

"**Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself. I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin, sending you back to your father."**

"**Mr. D—" Chiron warned.**

"**Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But it's deadly foolishness." Dionysus rose, and the invisible players' cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do." **

"Did you just say his name right?" Nico asked in disbelief. Thalia smirked "It's a miracle." The two laughed as well as the gods remembering a little show that was put on just yesterday.

**Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle. A credit card? No. A security pass.**

**He snapped his fingers.**

**The air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was one, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes were lingering behind.**

**Chiron smiled at me, but he looked tired and strained. "Sit, Percy, please. And Grover."**

**We did.**

**Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use. **

"How are you the god of parties and gambling and such if you can't even beat Chiron?" Hermes asked truly puzzled. Dionysus glared at him and Hermes shut up.

"**Tell me, Percy," he said. "What did you make of the hellhound?" **

"It was nothing. I could do that in my sleep." Percy said sarcastically making the Nico and Thalia grin. Now he could.

**Just hearing the name made me shudder.**

**Chiron probably wanted me to say, **_**Heck, it was nothing. I eat hellhounds for breakfast. **_**But I didn't feel like lying. **

The trio laughed. **(A/N the trio is short form for Nico, Percy and Thalia since the furtures includes Jason and he doesn't know Percy yet.) **

Zoe stared, since when did a man not want to lie about his abilities?

**It scared me," I said. "If you hadn't shot it, I'd be dead."**

"**You'll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you're done." **

"I hate the worse things." Percy said wistfully "The good old days when the worst was a boring old hellhound and fury and the Miontaur." Nico said sarcastically. "Yeah! You understand me Nicky!" "DON"T CALL ME NICKY!"

That conversation started making everyone nervous, really nervous. The furies frowned though, I mean they were Hades torturers, they should be more feared. Not wished to be fought against!

"**Done…with what?"**

"**Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"**

**I glanced at Grover, who was crossing fingers.**

"**Um, sir," I said, "you haven't told me what it is yet."**

**Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's that the hard part, the details."**

**Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. As far as I could see, the sky and the sea were boiling together. **

Cue the stares at Poseidon and Zeus! Hey, just like yesterday!

"**Poseidon and Zeus," I said. "They're fighting over something valuable…something that was stolen, aren't they?"**

**Chiron and Grover exchanged looks. **

Zeus paled "My bolt!"

**Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?"**

**My face felt hot. I wished I hadn't opened my big mouth. "The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky fighting. Then I talked to Annabeth, and she'd overheard something about a theft. And…I've also been having these dreams."**

"**I knew it," Grover said.**

"**Hush, satyr," Chiron ordered.**

"**But it is his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"**

"**Only the Oracle can determine." Chiron stroked his bristly beard. "Nevertheless, Percy, you are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt." **

"I knew it!" Zeus began to hyperventilate. "Father!" Athena interrupted Zeus' self-pity fest. "I'm sure the bolt will be returned so please calm down."

**I laughed nervously. "A what?"**

"**Do not take this lightly," Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives."**

"**Oh."**

"**Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up now. "The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne: the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers." **

Zeus looked proud for a split second before resuming to worry about his poor weapon. Mentally of course, since Hera's glare was not something he wanted to fight at the moment.

"**And it's missing?"**

"**Stolen," Chiron said.**

"**By who?"**

"**By whom," Chiron corrected. Once a teacher, always a teacher. "By you."**

**My mouth fell open.**

"**At least"—Chiron help up a hand—"that's what Zeus thinks. During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument. The usual nonsense: 'Mother Rhea always liked you best,' 'Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters," et cetera. Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from the throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon. Now, a god cannot usurp another god's symbol of power directly—that is forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it." **

Everyone looked at Zeus who snapped out of his trance and shrugged.

"**But I didn't—"**

"**Patience and listen, child," Chiron said. "Zeus has good reasons to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brother's lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne. The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief." **

Everyone slightly glared at Zeus who mentally whimpered "What?!" he cried "it makes sense!" "Well fine, I-I-I probably didn't know a-a-all the details." Zeus got out. Inwardly the rest laughed, it was extremely fun making the King of the Gods squirm.

"**But I've never even been to Olympus! Zeus is crazy!" **

The glares reversed (for Zeus at least) but Percy shrugged "Sorry, it seemed like that at the time, plus I was twelve and just started believing in the gods."

**Chiron and Grover glanced nervously at the sky. The clouds didn't seem to be parting around us, as Grover had promised. They were rolling straight over our valley, sealing us in a like a coffin lid.**

"**Er, Percy…?" Grover said. "We don't use the c-word to describe the Lord of the Sky."**

"**Perhaps paranoid," Chiron suggest. "Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam…" He looked at me as if he actually expected me to remember question thirty-eight. **

"Isn't memorizing things easy?" Theseus and Athena asked. Thalia shrugged "We're not all a) Athena's children and b) blessed by her you know."

**How could anyone accuse me of stealing a god's weapon? I couldn't even steal a slice of pizza from Gabe's poker party without getting busted. **

Hermes gasped "Percy, don't worry by the time all of these books are over I'll teach you, how to lie and steal perfectly. You have my word!"

**Chiron was waiting for an answer. **"**Somet****hing about a**** golden net?" I guessed. "Poseidon and Hera and a few other gods…they, like, trapped Zeus and wouldn't let him out until he promised to be a better ruler, right? **

Poseidon frowned "No fair! That was Hera's idea."

"**Correct," Chiron said. "And Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt. He took great offense at the accusation. The two have been arguing back and forth for months, threatening war. And now, you've come along—the proverbial last straw."**

"**But I'm just a kid!"**

"**Percy," Grover cut in, "if you were Zeus, and you already thought your brother was plotting to overthrow you, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he's fathered a new mortal hero who might be used as a weapon against you…Wouldn't that put a twist in your toga?"**

"**But I didn't do anything. Poseidon—my dad—he didn't really have this master bolt stolen, did he?" **

"Of course not!" Poseidon looked at Percy for confirmation "Right?" Percy shrugged "You'll see."

**Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants and apology for being called a thief by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. But your arrival inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?" **

**"Bad?" I guessed.**

**"****Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight."**

"That was a great war! So this war would be even worse?" Ares said excited, though the glares from the other Olympians made him stop grinning like a little kid with a sugar rush.

"**Bad," I repeated.**

"**And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus's wrath." **

"Ouch." Jason winced and Orion nodded "Wraths are never fun to face." Everyone stared at Orion oddly who shrugged. "What?" They all shook their heads.

**I had brought this storm to Half-Blood Hill. Zeus was punishing the whole camp because of me. I was furious.**

"**So I have to find the stupid bolt," I said. "And return it to Zeus." **

"It's not stupid!" Zeus defended. "Yes, it is." Hera said leaving Zeus to gap at her.

"**What better peace offering," Chiron said, "than to have the son of Poseidon return Zeus's property." **

"That would stop dad from throwing a tantrum." Perseus agreed and Hercules stayed silent.

**It started to rain. Volleyball players stopped their game and stared in stunned silence at the sky. **

Hestia frowned "Brother, you shouldn't punish everybody even if you though it was justice." Zeus looked ashamed "Soory Hestia." Hestia nodded pleased.

"**If Poseidon doesn't have it, where is the thing?"**

"**I believe I know." Chiron's expression was grim. "Part of a prophecy I had years ago…well, some lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the quest. You must seek the counsel of the Oracle." **

"Yay! My awesome oracle!" Apollo cheered.

"**Why can't you tell me where the bolt is beforehand?"**

"**Because if I did, you would be too afraid to accept the challenge."**

**I swallowed. "Good reason."**

"**You agree then?"**

**I looked at Grover, who nodded encouragingly. **

**Easy for him. I was the one Zeus wanted to kill.**

Everyone burst out laughing.

"**All right," I said. "It's better than being turned into a dolphin." **

"Really?" Dionysus asked, "I'm sure it is." Ariadne said softly.

"**Then it's time you consulted the Oracle," Chiron said. "Go upstairs, Percy Jackson, to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more." **

Apollo pouted "My oracle isn't _that_...Ok, I guess she can make a bit of an impression." Apollo conceded when he felt all those stares. "But why does she have to stay in an attic?" No answer.

**Four flights up, the stairs ended under a green trapdoor.**

**I pulled the cord. The door swung down, and a wooden ladder clattered into place.**

**The warm air from above smelled like mildew and rotten wood and something else…a smell I remembered from biology class. Reptiles. The smell of snakes. **

Aphrodite shuddered and Ares rubbed her shoulder.

**I held my breath and climbed.**

**The attic was filled with Greek hero junk: armor stands covered in cobwebs; once-bright shields pitted with rust; old leather steamer trunks plastered with stickers saying ITHAKA, CIRCE'S ISLE, and LAND OF THE AMAZONS. One long table was stacked with glass jars filled with pickled things—several hairy claws, huge yellow eyes, various other parts of monsters. A dusty mounted trophy on the wall looked like a giant snake's head, but with horns and a full set of shark's teeth. The plaque read, HYDRA HEAD #1, WOODSTOCK, N.Y., 1969. **

Percy blinked in surprise, everything but the Amazons had happened to him in a sense on his next quest. And Hylla, Queen of the Amazons was originally from Circe's island. Huh, funny.

**By the window, sitting on a wooden tripod stool, was the most gruesome memento of all: a mummy. Not the wrapped-in-cloth kind, but a human female body shriveled to a husk. She wore a tie-dyed sundress, lots of beaded necklaces, and a headband over long black hair. The skin of her face was thin and leathery over her skull, and her eyes were glassy white slits, as if the real eyes had been replaced by marbles; she'd been dead a long, long time. ****By the window, sitting on a wooden tripod stool, was the most gruesome memento of all: a mummy. Not the wrapped-in-cloth kind, but a human female body shriveled to a husk. She wore a tie-dyed sundress, lots of beaded necklaces, and a headband over long black hair. The skin of her face was thin and leathery over her skull, and her eyes were glassy white slits, as if the real eyes had been replaced by marbles; she'd been dead a long, long time.**

Apollo looked horrified "What happened to my oracle?!"

**Looking at her sent chills up my back. And that was before she sat up on her stool and opened her mouth. A green mist poured from the mummy's mouth, coiling over the floor in thick tendrils, hissing like twenty thousand snakes. I stumbled over myself trying to get to the trapdoor, but it slammed shut. Inside my head, I heard a voice, slithering into one ear and coiling around my brain: **_**I am the spirit of Delpi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask.** _

Apollo forced a grin at the words but was still worried.

**I wanted to say, **_**No thanks, wrong door, just looking for the bathroom. **_**But forced myself to take a deep breath.**

Triton stared at his half-brother weirdly, "You actually thought that?" He received a shrug in response.

**The mummy wasn't alive. She was some kind of gruesome receptacle for something else, the power that was now swirling around me in the green mist. But its presence didn't feel evil, like my demonic math teacher Mrs. Dodds or the Minotaur. It felt more like the Three Fates I'd seen knitting the yarn outside the highway fruit stand: ancient, powerful, and definitely not human. But not particularly interest in killing me, either.**

**I got up the courage to ask, "What is my destiny?" **

"Wow, dramatic much?" Hermes asked in a joking tone making Percy crack a grin.

**The mist swirled more thickly, collecting right in front of me and around the table with the pickled monster-part jars. Suddenly there were four men sitting around the table, playing cards. Their faces became clearer. It was Smelly Gabe and his buddies.**

**My fists clenched, though I knew this poker party couldn't be real. It was an illusion, made out of mist. **

Everyone else was too as well as gritted teeth, "Why is he mention again?!" Orion wailed dramatically, easing up the tension effectively.

**Gabe turned toward me and spoke in the rasping voice of the Oracle: **_**You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.**_

**His buddy on the right looked up and said in the same voice: **_**You shall find what was stolen and see it safely returned.**_

**The guy on the left threw in two poker chips, then said: **_**You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.**_

**Finally, Eddie, our building supervisor, delivered the worst line of all: **_**And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.**_

**The figures began to dissolve. At first I was too stunned to say anything, but as the mist retreated, coiling into a huge green serpent and slithering back into the mouth of the mummy, I cried, "Wait! What do you mean? What friend? What will I fail to save?" **

"The prophecy is said, she can't tell you anything more." Apollo said sympathetically. Zeus smiled "You shall return what waas stolen and see it safely returned, my bolt!" Persephone glared "Let me read." She hissed.

**The tail of the mist snake disappeared into the mummy's mouth. She reclined back against the wall. Her mouth closed tight, as if it hadn't been open in a hundred years. The attic was silent again, abandoned, nothing but a room full of mementos.**

**I got the feeling that I could stand here until had cobwebs, too, and I wouldn't learn anything else.**

**My audience with the Oracle was over.**

"**Well?" Chiron asked me.**

**I slumped into a chair at the pinochle table. "She said I would retrieve what was stolen."**

**Grover sat forward, chewing excitedly on the remains of a Diet Coke can. "That's great!" **

Zeus nodded enthusiastically.

"**What did the Oracle say exactly?" Chiron pressed. "This important."**

**My ears were still tingling from the reptilian voice. "She…she said I would go west and face a god who had turned. I would retrieve what was stolen and see it safely returned."**

"**I knew it," Grover said.**

**Chiron didn't look satisfied. "Anything else?" **

**I didn't want to tell him. **

"Who would?" Perseus agreed.

**What friend would betray me? I didn't have that many.  
**

"That's kind of sad."

**And the last line—I would fail to save what mattered most. What kind of Oracle would send me on a quest and tell me, **_**Oh, by the way, you'll fail.**_

"Apollo's." Artemis said rolling her eyes.

**How could I confess that?**

"**No," I said. "That's about it."**

**He studied my face. "Very well, Percy. But know this: the Oracle's words often have double meanings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass." **

"Ain't that the truth?" Percy said solemnly. "No seriously, no figuring out what'll happen with prophecies, right Apollo?" Percy smirked and Apollo grinned agreeing heartily "Absolutely!"

**I got the feeling he knew I was holding back something bad, and he was trying to make me feel better.**

"**Okay," I said, anxious to change topics. "So where do I go? Who's this god in the west?"**

"**Ah, think, Percy," Chiron said. "If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"**

"**Somebody else who wants to take over?" I guessed.**

"**Yes, quite. Someone who harbors a grudge, who has been unhappy with is lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow powerful with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brother for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken." **

"Are you serious? I have the freaking Underworld, with people dying left and right. Why would I need to make them die earlier?" Everyone shrugged no being able to respond.

**I thought about my dreams, the evil voice that had spoken from under the ground. "Hades."**

**Chiron nodded. "The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility." **

"It's better than the other alternative." Poseidon reasoned and Hades nodded letting go of his excess anger.

**A scrap of aluminum dribbled out of Grover's mouth. "Whoa, wait. Wh-what?" **

Bursting into laughter, it was a good tension release for all the worrying they were currently doing. (they not including Percy).

"**A Fury came after Percy," Chiron reminded him. "She watched the young man until she was sure of his identity, then tried to kill him. Furies obey only one lord: Hades."**

"**Yes, but—but Hades hates all heroes," Grove protested. "Especially if he has found out Percy is a son of Poseidon…"**

"**A hellhound got into the forest," Chiron continued. "Those can only be summoned from the Fields of Punishment, and it had to be summoned by someone within the camp. Hades must have a spy here. He must suspect Poseidon will try to use Percy to clear his name. Hades would very much like to kill this young half-blood before he can take on the quest."**

"**Great," I muttered. "That's two major gods who want to kill me."**

"**But a quest to…" Grover swallowed. "I mean, couldn't the master bolt be in some place like Maine? Maine's very nice this time of year." **

As laughter reigned once again the trio could only think one thing _Oh Grover!_

"**Hades sent a minion to steal the master bolt," Chiron insisted. "He hid it in the Underworld, knowing full well that Zeus would blame Poseidon. I don't pretend to understand the Lord of the Dead's motives perfectly, or why he chose this time to start war, but one thing is certain. Percy must go to the Underworld, find the master bolt, and reveal the truth." **

"Because I didn't do any such thing, I swear it on the Styx." Hades growled. "Um, Lord Hades?" Nico said awkwardly "It's in the future the oath won't work." Hades glared at the book sullenly while Persephone laid a hand on Hades' arm. Demeter suppressed her anger at the action. For now at least.

**A strange fire burned in my stomach. The weirdest thing was: it wasn't fear. It was anticipation. The desire for revenge. Hades had tried to kill me three times so far, with the Fury, the Minotaur, and the hellhound. It was his fault my mother had disappeared in a flash of light. Now he was trying to frame me and my dad for a theft we hadn't committed.**

**I was ready to take him on.**

**Besides, if my mother was in the Underworld… **

Hades sighed but didn't reveal anything. Percy caught his eye though and smirked. Hades realized he knew what had happened and why. He relaxed and listened after all he was now sure he had done no such thing.

**Whoa, boy, said the small part of my brain that was still sane.**

"You're mind is even partially sane?" Nico asked earning a _scary_ glare from Percy and chuckles from the rest.

** You're a kid. Hades is a god. **

"That's right." Hades nodded with a small smile only Percy noticed.

**Grover was trembling. He'd started eating pinochle cards like potato chips.**

**The poor guy needed to complete a quest with me so he could get his searcher's license, whatever that was, but how could I ask him to do this quest, especially when the Oracle said I was destined to fail? This was suicide.**

"**Look, if we know it's Hades," I told Chiron, "why can't we just tell the other gods? Zeus or Poseidon could go down to the Underworld and bust some heads." **

"We're not allowed." Ares said.

**Suspecting and knowing are not the same," Chiron said. "Besides, even if the other gods suspect Hades—and I imagine Poseidon does—they couldn't retrieve the bolt themselves. Gods cannot cross each other's territories except by invitation. That is another ancient rule. Heroes, on the other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they're bold enough and strong enough to do it. No god can be held responsible for a hero's actions. Why do you think the gods always operate through humans?"**

"**You're saying I'm being used." **

"Yes/No!" The demigods stared at the gods "Don't lie it's yes."

"**I'm saying it's no accident Poseidon has claimed you now. It's a very risky gamble, but he's in a desperate situation. He needs you."**

**My dad needs me.**

**Emotions rolled around inside me like bits of glass in a kaleidoscope. I didn't know whether to feel resentful or grateful or happy or angry. Poseidon had ignored me for twelve years. Now suddenly he needed me. **

The gods were feeling an alienated emotion _GUILT._

**I looked at Chiron. "You've known I was Poseidon's son all along, haven't you?"**

"**I had my suspicions. As I said...I've spoken to the Oracle, too."**

**I got the feeling there was a lot he wasn't telling me about his prophecy, but I decided I couldn't worry about that right now. After all, I was holding back information too.**

"**So let me get this straight," I said. "I'm supposed to go to the Underworld and confront the Lord of the Dead." **

"Which he does not deserve." Meagera hissed.

"**Check," Chiron said.**

"**Find the most powerful weapon in the universe." **

"And give to me!" Zeus said happily.

"**Check."**

"**And get it back to Olympus before the summer solstice, in ten days."**

"**That's about right."**

**I looked at Grover, who gulped down the ace of hearts. **

**Did I mention that Maine is very nice this time of year?" he asked weakly.**

"**You don't have to go," I told him. "I can't ask that of you."**

"You care about you friends?" Artemis said in surprise. The shock built when Percy nodded.

"**Oh…" He shifted his hooves. "No…it's just that satyrs and underground places…well…"**

**He took a deep breath, then stood, brushing the shredded cards and aluminum bits off his T-shirt. "You saved my life, Percy. If…if you're serious about wanting me along, I won't let you down."**

**I felt so relieved I wanted to cry, though I didn't think that would be very heroic. Grover was the only friend I'd ever had for longer than a few months. I wasn't sure what good a satyr could do against the forces of the dead, but I felt better knowing he'd be with me. **

"You're a good person, Percy Jackson." The boy dipped his head "Thank you Lady Hestia."

"**All the way, G-man." I turned to Chiron. "So where do we go? The Oracle just said to go west."**

"**The entrance to the Underworld is always in the west. It moves from age to age, just like Olympus. Right now, of course, it's in America."**

"**Where?"**

**Chiron looked surprised. "I thought that would be obvious enough. The entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles."**

"**Oh," I said. "Naturally. So we just get on a plane—" **

"**No!" Grover shrieked. "Percy, what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?"  
**

**I shook my head, feeling embarrassed. My mom had never taken me anywhere by plane. She'd always said we didn't have the money. Besides, her parents had died in a plane crash.**

"**Percy, think," Chiron said. "You are the son of the Sea God. Your father's bitterest rival is Zeus, Lord of the Sky. Your mother knew better than to trust you in an airplane. You would be in Zeus's domain. You would never come down again alive." **

"But I did." Percy murmured.

**Overhead, lightning crackled. Thunder boomed.**

"**Okay," I said, determined not to look at the storm. "So, I'll travel overland."**

"**That's right," Chiron said. "Two companions may accompany you. Grover is one. The other has already volunteered, if you will accept her help."**

"**Gee," I said, feigning surprise. "Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this?"**

**The air shimmered behind Chiron.**

**Annabeth became visible, stuffing her Yankees cap into her back pocket.**

"**I've been waiting a long time for a quest, seaweed brain," she said. "Athena is no fan of Poseidon, but if you're going to save the world, I'm the best person to keep you from messing up." **

Nico and Thalia burst out laughing "Seriously, you just called the daughter of Athena indirectly stupid?" Percy just shrugged, "We didn't like each other at all back then."

"**If you do say so yourself," I said. "I suppose you have a plan, wise girl?" **

"I can't believe, you used Clarisse's nick name." Jason shook his head in mock disappointment.

**Her cheeks colored. "Do you want my help or not?"**

**The truth was, I did. I needed all the help I could get.**

"**A trio," I said. "That'll work."**

"**Excellent," Chiron said. "This afternoon, we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you are on your own."**

**Lightning flashed. Rain poured down on the meadows that were never supposed to have violent weather. **

"Sorry okay?" Zeus said frustrated when he felt stares on him once _again_. Surprisingly everyone nodded this time and turned back to the book. Zeus' jaw dropped open and he gave up. His family was dysfunctional, he should learn to ignore it. Funny how Dionysus who was not as used to this god business was more accustomed to ignoring than himself.

"**No time to waste," Chiron said. "I think you should all get packing." **

"The end." Persephone announced and Ares took the book. "Alright punk, I'll show you I can read." **Chapter 10... I Ruin A Perfectly Good Bus**

**Well, there the end of this chapter. I hope you all liked it and once again super sorry. And if Zeus seemed a little OOC well, I just wanted to have him not be King of the Gods for a moment and feel intimidated. I'll work on not doing it anymore if you didn't like it. So let me know what you think. Thanks a lot to everyone who reviewed and I've decided that if you all have questions that don't get answered in the next chapter I'll PM you and let you know. Unless you're a guest, then I'll reply in the chapter. Bye!**


End file.
